H.S. SOCCER: South Side continues to build program

Prior to last season, the South Side girls’ soccer program struggled to compete against the above average and average teams in West Tennessee.

Multiple losses each season came by five or more goals.

South Side coach Margaret Day has worked to turn that around along with her assistant Kwesi Uqdah.

“Consistency in coaching has helped,” Day said. “Before I got here, there was lots of coach switching. Then Qwesi came in to help me, and he is an incredible coach. We work well together, and with him we can split the team and work on different things.”

The work the two coaches have put in is starting to show on the field.

For the second straight season, the Lady Hawks won the District 14 A-AA North Division and enter the district tournament as a No. 1 seed.

“A lot of people doubted us after we lost half of the team,” South Side senior Alexis Uqdah said. “We are proud to hold the title again.”

South Side (5-7-1) beat Trenton Peabody, South Fulton and Gibson County to win that title.

The Lady Hawks are also starting to compete against the tougher teams in the area. Recently, South Side was within one goal of Madison until the 76th minute when the Lady Mustangs scored twice in the final four minutes, and the team also picked up a 4-1 victory over a Westview team that annually reaches the region tournament.

Even after winning the division last season, there were doubts for the Lady Hawks to repeat. South Side lost six starters off last year’s team, and many played vital roles on the field.

“Fortunately, we got a lot of great incoming freshmen this season,” Day said. “They have been a lifesaver. We don’t usually get good talent, but these girls went to Rose Hill [Middle] and they have been playing their whole life. They still have some development to go through.”

South Side also received a gift when basketball player Meagan Kitchen decided to come out for soccer and play goalkeeper for the team.

“She has great hand-eye coordination, and she has made some fingertip saves for us against Madison and Peabody,” Day said.

But the success of this team rests on the shoulders of the three seniors who each play a different position on the field – Uqdah, Christina Buffington and Sierra Robinson.

“Alexis is such a mature soccer player that knows the game,” Day said. “Sierra has helped teach the young players on defense when to rotate, when to shift and when to push forward.”

Robinson said it was tough at first getting the young players to quickly step into a varsity role.

“They are young and not as experienced,” Robinson said. “More was falling on me as a sweeper, but it was just a matter of practicing every little thing that we do. We just had to play consistent.”

Uqdah agreed that the early parts of the preseason were tough.

“It took a lot of motivation,” she said. “They had it in them, they just had to be pushed. It has been great being a part of this program. Since I started as a sophomore, we have come from the bottom and worked to the top

Winning the top seed in the North Division is not the ultimate goal for this program.

“We are hoping to improve and in a couple of years contend with the other side of the district for a district championship,” Day said. “South Side has long been swept under the table, but we are emerging as a program.”

Robinson has also seen the program grow in her years at South Side.

“At first, no one wanted to play here,” Robinson said. “But this year one freshman told me she wanted to play at South Side because we won the division last year. We have come a long way.”

One aspect that helped the South Side program grow is their own field located behind Bemis Montessori.

“The administration at South Side and the people of Bemis Montessori have worked hard to make this happen,” Day said.

Michael Odom, 425-9754