By Tyler Waldrep, The Anniston Star
SPRINGVILLE — Springville soccer coach Meg Childress played on the Tiger’s first team back in 2015. Now seven years later, she was named the St. Clair County Coach of the Year after guiding the team to an 11-4-1 season that included a trip to the third round of the Class 6A playoffs.
“So coming back now as a coach, the program has grown a ton, and they have really improved every single year,” Childress said.
Receiving the award after only her second season in charge was an honor for Childress, but the coach was quick to deflect praise to her players.
Many of those girls joined their coach on the St. Clair All-County team. Springville led all schools with five selections, including Sophie Crotts, Claire Hamilton, Maggie Nalley, Lela Nalley and Rebecca Sierra.
Both Lela Nalley and Hamilton were senior co-captains this season. Nalley finished the season with four goals and one assist. She also served as a consistent source of strength for the Tigers.
“She will definitely be missed next year,” Childress said. “She is a great teammate. She leads by example, and we can always count on her on the field.”
Hamilton’s path to the all-county team was anything but assured when the season began.
“We can always count on her,” Childress said. “She actually began the season with an injury but overcame it and ended the season strong.”
That strong finish helped the Tigers reach the third round of the Class 6A playoffs for the first time in program history. The Tigers won the first two rounds by a combined score of 5-2, before dropping the third-round game 6-1 to Southside.
Despite the lopsided score, Childress watched Nalley play exactly how she’d done all season long.
“The last game was definitely emotional, but Lela played the entire game, she gave it her all no matter what,” Childress said. “Like she played until the very last second.”
While Springville will miss those two seniors, the Tigers return their top two scorers in Sierra, a freshman with 20 goals, and Maggie Nalley, a sophomore with 12 goals.
“She had some amazing passes, which led to her having the most assists this season,” Childress said of Maggie.
Sierra was a pleasant surprise for Childress this season, considering the freshman had not played on varsity before. Fellow freshman, Crotts, was anything but as she started in the goal for the second-straight season.
This year she recorded 65 saves in only 16 games while helping the Tigers limit opponents to only 29 total goals this season.
“She is dependable,” Childress said. “She is fearless in goal.”
It’s not going to be easy, but Childress said she expects big things from that trio and the other returning Tigers next season.
“Yes, we’ve definitely got big shoes to fill next year,” Childress said. “We are starting with high expectations, but I think that they are up for the challenge.”
The 2022 St. Clair County All-County Girls’ Soccer Team
Ashville – Kathleen McCarthy
Ashville – Taylor Knight
Ashville – Samantha Nabors
Moody – Sophie Crowe
Moody – Emily Courington
St. Clair County – Kailyn Turner
St. Clair County – Hannah Mullens
St. Clair County – Savannah Kelley
Springville – Maggie Nalley
Springville – Rebecca Sierra
Springville – Sophie Crotts
Springville – Lela Nalley
Springville – Claire Hamilton
Coach of the Year- Springville’s Meg Childress
This story originally appeared in The Anniston Star and is used with permission.