ARRICK A KEY FOR LADY MOUNTIES ON AND OFF THE FIELD

The junior played every minute of the Class 7A state finals match a year ago and had two assists to help Rogers High claim the title, but her role has expanded both on and off the field this year to try to help her team go back-to-back. The defending champions head into today's state tournament as co-champions of the 6A-West with Bentonville, but the Lady Mounties (18-3) will be the No. 2 seed from the West since the Lady Tigers won the tiebreaker. They earned a first-round bye and will face the Mount St. Mary-Bentonville West winner on Friday at noon in a quarterfinal matchup. Rogers High coach Aaron Crouch said Arrick, a three-year starter, has taken to the captain's role naturally. "She's definitely one of the more vocal ones," Crouch said. "Especially if we're not doing what we're supposed to be doing. She's one of the first ones to be like 'Seriously, come on. Let's get our act together.'" "We lost a lot of strong leadership last year, and there was really a need for someone to step up. She saw a need we had." Arrick finished with nine goals and 10 assists for the Lady Mounties a year ago and earned honorable mention all-conference honors. But she's played club soccer since she was 8 years old, so her experience goes significantly beyond just high school. "She's got a wealth of knowledge outside of what she does with us," Crouch said. "She's traveled all over the country, sees things differently and knows a lot of the girls in our conference whether it's playing against them or with them in club. She knows what to expect from them." Arrick has a close personal connection with her teammates, which she says helps in her role as a leader. But she's also learned what Crouch wants and their relationship has also evolved. "She has a lot of experience with me now and knows me and kind of what I want," Crouch said. "It allows us to dialogue on things I want to see or things she thinks we need to improve on." Her role on the field has become more multidimensional this year, after playing center mid a year ago. Arrick moved to an outside midfield position mainly, but that's not always the case. "It's very fluid depending on the game," Crouch said. "We had a game recently where she played outside and mid and center mid in the same half." And Arick admitted it hasn't always been easy. "Playing outside mid took me a while to learn and get used to the runs," Arrick said. "Last year with me in the midfield it was more stressful just because we would go so fast from defending to attack." But she said her skill level has improved over a year ago, which allows her to be more dynamic on the outside. "I'm not one of the fastest people on the team, so I have to draw them in and dribble around them," Arrick said. "I can't beat them on long sprints." Arrick's state tournament experience also will be invaluable as the Lady Mounties start the journey toward a possible second straight title, Crouch said. "She knows how many barriers you have to not just jump, but plow through to get that far," Crouch said. "It's a long season and if you're in the finals, that's two more weeks. Our underclassmen will need that leadership the further we go." Arrick and the Lady Mounties are hoping their season can stretch just another week to get a shot at another state title.

ARRICK A KEY FOR LADY MOUNTIES ON AND OFF THE FIELD

PAUL BOYD

Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette | 5/9/2019

PHOTO CREDIT: Charlie Kaijo