The Golden Era: Archbishop Hoban girls soccer has a new coach, but same big aspirations

If there was supposed to be a hiccup, the Archbishop Hoban girls soccer team didn’t get the message.

The Knights opened a Division II, Region 5 sectional final with a 13-1 win over 22nd-seeded Tallmadge on Wednesday.

If things hold like they have under first-year coach Abbey Golden, Hoban’s ride won’t end soon.

Not that it’s anything new for the Knights (12-4).

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“I think as a team, we jelled with coach Golden instantly,” Hoban midfielder/forward Ava Lucey said. “I think she's an amazing coach and she's such a student of the game. She adds new aspects to this team that we haven't had in the past, like the way that she understands each player and how to communicate with each individual.

"It really helped this team jell as a unit compared to being very individualized in years past. I think that's why we've had so much success this season.”

Golden, who played collegiately for University of the Pacific and professionally for the San Francisco Nighthawks of the Women’s Premier Soccer League, knew a thing or two about the game before coming to the Knights.

She also knew that Hoban had been a district champ five times in the last nine seasons, a state champ in 2015 and state runner-up in 2014.

The Knights were regional finalists in 2020 in Division I, had double-digit wins in six of the last nine seasons and were 118-44-12 during that stretch.

“I walked out of my interview and when I got the call that I received the job I think there was mutual excitement,” Golden said. “When I started, it was very easy to help the team accomplish what their goals were. The girls' mantra this year was 'uKnighted’. Obviously, we're the Knights so it's a play on words because they just added a lowercase u in front of it.

"That was a big thing this year that these kids said that they felt they needed to be more of a family to understand each other and they needed a coach that was going to understand how much all of that meant.”

Relationships build team and wins at Hoban

That relationship took a big step forward in the second game of the regular season when Hoban beat 2021 Division I runner-up Walsh Jesuit 4-2.

That showed Hoban that the “Golden Era” could be just as good as the Patrick Dobbins era.

That’s saying a lot considering Dobbins’ accolades.

“I don’t think we've ever beaten them, so that was huge,” Hoban midfielder Lauren Tonsing said. “It was exciting. I’m getting excited talking about it now because not only was it a bit of a rivalry, but it's the defending state finalist and they're an amazing program.

“They do amazing things every year, and for it to be the second game of the season where we set the tone for our potential, we understood what we could do. We’re just really excited to keep living up to that victory.”

A brief look back shows the best Hoban has done in the last 15 seasons against the Warriors is a 1-1 tie in 2013, so the win was indeed a momentum builder for the program.

Knights ready to take 'Big Mo' into postseason

It’s momentum the Knights hope to take into next week.

“Each class has a separate goal and each kid has an individual goal,” Golden said. “These kids that are here within this program are chasing kids that have graduated and were All-Americans. Miriam Szijarto [All-American and a first-team All-Ohioan in 2019 and 2020] was a huge influence to the kids on our team.

“I think the big thing is, again, you want to leave that jersey in the right place, but you want to give them the opportunity to build within the tradition that they've helped create. And you know, these seven seniors are all very, very unique. I have a very eclectic group with very many different backgrounds. And they want to make sure the legacy that they leave is, is extremely positive, but it's not just about the one time that they did this one thing against a specific rival team. They're also making sure to not just leave it and say, ‘OK, good luck.’

“They've been taking underclassmen and young players under their wings and showing them how it's to be done. They're holding themselves and their teammates accountable. … When you have that standard set, and that mindset changed, then it's an expectation.”

Contact Brad Bournival at bbournival@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter at @bbournival.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Archbishop Hoban girls soccer playoff run continuing