Outside back enjoyed physical facet of soccer

November 13, 2018

Haley Carpenter said there was no place better to play a soccer match than on the turf field at Seymour High School.

“I loved home matches. I loved the all the support that we got, especially from my parents. Senior Night was a big crowd for me, and I really liked that,” she said.

Carpenter played three years in the Seymour Park and Recreation Department league and followed that up with four years at the high school. She was one of four seniors to earn their fourth varsity letter this fall.

“I stated rec just for fun, then my brother was telling me how the high school soccer coach was wanting to talk to me, so basically, coach (Greg) Musser got me to play on the team,” Carpenter said.

She found a home at outside left back as a freshman and played there throughout her high school career.

She helped the Owls win 13 matches and advance to the sectional finals this fall after winning 12 matches her junior year.

“I did overlapping runs, get up on the play whenever we had possession of the ball. I would come back and support, and I intercepted balls a lot,” she said. “I’m not really the fastest, but I like get physical. My dad always loved it when I’d get up in people’s grill and knock people over, so I loved the physical part.”

Carpenter said communication was important, especially in the middle of the field.

“You have to communicate with your teammates, tell them to turn to look for the ball,” Carpenter said. “Just talking to them helps them and helps you. If you have a teammate and somebody is coming at them and they don’t know because can’t really see them, you can tell them ‘man on’ or something like that.”

Carpenter said the team had a close bond.

“I loved it when we played as a team because that is important, too,” she said. “We had a two-hour meeting (during the season), and we had a team bonding part. After that, I felt like whenever we played as a team and we communicated and just had fun, those were the best kind of games.”

She said she liked practicing with her teammates and getting to know them more.

“I even practiced with JV a lot and got closer with them,” she said. “I may not have been a captain with the older girls, but I felt like I was more of a leader with the younger girls, and I was hoping they would look up to me a lot more.”

Carpenter said she has enjoyed attending SHS and likes her teachers and the classes.

“I like going to Brown school (as a teacher’s aide) for my internship,” she said. “I enjoy building relationships with the kids at Brown. They are third-graders, so I like little kids.”

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Name: Haley Carpenter

High school: Seymour

Parents: Amy and Gilbert Carpenter

Sibling: Zachery

Sport: Soccer, four years

Athletic highlights: Academic All-State, winning the Hoosier Cup, 2015 most improved player, two-time sectional finalists

Organizations: DARE role model, Seymour Christian Church youth ministry

Plans after high school: Attend college and study mission work, photography or teaching

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