Graduation hits every high school team, albeit in different levels from year to year. The Lyme girls soccer team lost 13 members after last season's state championship run.

The roster was left bare, save for the player named outstanding goalie at the Class D state tournament, Alex Weston.

First-year coach Kristen Robbins and Weston learned quickly, though, that preventing their opponents from scoring would mean little in the standings if the team was unable score.

"She's kind of our returning star," Robbins said, "and I think it was tough for her being in the goal and watching us not finishing."

So Robbins made a difficult decision. The Times All-North honorable-mention pick was going to come out of the net and roam in the offensive end as Lyme's attacker.

"I was little surprised, obviously," Weston said. "I've been playing in goal for a couple years now."

Weston's impact was immediate as she scored the game-winning goal in a 2-1 victory over Sandy Creek. Weston also added game-winners against Alexandria, LaFargeville — games in which her goal was the only one scored in the contest — and Sackets Harbor.

Weston has become a target on the offensive end, as opposed to her usual task of protecting her opposition's target. Her game-winner against Alexandria came off a corner kick that she was able to head into the net.

"She's a big, physical presence in the field," Robbins said. "She's a finisher. She's a goal-scorer."

Weston's net hasn't been abandoned, though, as Taylor Malinowski has performed admirably, recording a pair of shutouts while Weston rotated.

"Depending on how this week turns out, we're going to finish second or third in our division," Robbins said, "and we weren't supposed to beat anybody this year. We're supposed to be rebuilding. But we've done really well."

Weston is the current scoring and saves leader for the Indians.

"I like being on the field and in goal equally," Weston said. "I like scoring goals, but I like the pressure where it's like, 'I need to save this.' That helps me like (playing at both ends) more because I don't want to let anybody down."

KNIGHTS KICK COLDS

Last season, the Copenhagen girls soccer team struggled with close games and finished at 6-12-1 overall and 5-8-1 in the Frontier League, good enough to tie Alexandria for a next-to-last finish in the "D" Division.

This season, things began just as rough for the Golden Knights after an opening set of losses against Lowville, Herkimer and Thousand Islands left Copenhagen literally sick to their stomachs.

"The girl that makes it all happen for us threw up," head coach Kris Cole said. "Then the next game another girl was throwing up when we had to play Sandy Creek. It was kind of ripping through my team."

The illnesses nearly decimated the Golden Knights, who finally fielded a team with the maturity and veteran savvy to win the close games they lost a season ago.

The turning point for the season came on Copenhagen's open-house night in a game against then-division-leading Sackets Harbor. Another player was sent home sick the day of the game. Things looked bleak, but the Golden Knights were able to eke out a 1-0 victory over the Patriots.

"I was remembering two seasons ago when we had a rough start and we played Sackets and we beat them on our open-house night," Cole said.

Counting that victory, Copenhagen has won seven straight games and seized its spot atop the "D" Division at 9-5-1, 9-3-1. The Golden Knights have outscored their opponents 18-3 over that span, and senior keeper Caitlin Gregory has recorded four shutouts while never allowing the opponent to score more than once.

Gregory's play, along with the scoring of Sara Hovendon (10 goals, four assists), Martha Sullivan (four goals, three assists) and Kristin Vogt (two goals, four assists) have given the Golden Knights the lift they've needed over the past month. And finally getting healthy hasn't hurt, either.

"Their colds are pretty much gone now, but I'm out of Kleenexes in the med kit," Cole said.

Sportswriter Daniel Kajdas covers girls soccer for the Times and may be reached at dkajdas@wdt.net.

“I like being on the field and in goal equally. I like scoring goals, but I like the pressure where it’s like, ‘I need to save this.’ That helps me like (playing at both ends) more because I don’t want to let anybody down.”

Alex Weston

Indians veteran