Sports

Orangeville Minor Soccer’s Storm FC U21 women’s team undefeated through June

July 3, 2025   ·   0 Comments

By Chris Broom

The Storm FC U21 Women’s team is competing for the first time in Ontario Soccer League regional play.

The squad is led by three former female players this season – head coach Kennedy Walsh and assistant coaches Caitlinn Hannaford and Alexis Shaw. They had to find time amongst their post-secondary studies this spring to complete the necessary coaching certifications to sit on the bench as first-year coaches.

All three women were on the field as the team’s season ended last year with a stinging loss in penalty kicks in the SWDSL Cup Final against Waterloo. The coaches felt strongly about their chances to win the group outright this summer. However, the district informed Storm FC that there were not enough entrants to form a league at the age level this year.

So, the coaches discussed their options with the club, and it was determined that playing a level up was better than not having a place to play at all for the players, and entry into the South Region division of OSL was secured.

Since then, the team has set up a weekly training session with solid participation from the players, which is not easy to accomplish when most of the girls are working summer jobs to pay for school.

After a 0-2 start to the season in May, the team has found its groove in June, posting wins over Brams United, Burlington SC and most recently, the Guelph Gryphons, during a heat wave last weekend.

Storm FC currently sit third out of six teams in the standings after a perfect record in June. The team boasts the leading scorer in the loop currently, with Anh Ngo having tallied six goals in five games.

Goalkeeper Katie Horyn is also tied for the lead in shutouts with two so far this season.

The team has now adapted to the faster pace of play in the OSL, and the rookie coaching staff is keeping the training sessions fun and the attitude on the bench positive during games as they learn on the job, too.

The next home game for the U21W is Sunday, July 13, at the Orangeville Lions Sports Park.

The game starts at 5 p.m.


Readers Comments (0)





Please note: Comment moderation is enabled and may delay your comment. There is no need to resubmit your comment.