Orange Lutheran senior Morgan Goehring thinks soccer is the perfect sport. After watching her older sister Madison play for several years, she got her chance on the pitch as a four-year old member of the Pink Ladies, her local AYSO team. Goehring fell in love with the game immediately.
“Honestly, soccer gives me my confidence,” says Goehring. “I love it so much. It's the perfect pace, and it's better than any sport ever. Just the way that we can manipulate the ball with our feet is something that I've always found so fascinating.”
The four-year varsity player is a forward for the Lancers, but Goehring considers herself more of a playmaker than a pure goal scorer.
“My favorite thing is assists,” says Goehring. “A lot of people think forwards score the goals. But I think one of the most important aspects of it is you’ve got to get there. I definitely rack up more assists than I do goals.”
Last season, OLu made its first CIF appearance in more than a decade, and the Lancers advanced to the CIF-SS Quarterfinals. Goehring feels this season provides the perfect opportunity to capitalize on the program’s recent success.
“We're going full steam ahead,” says Goehring. “We have so much motivation and drive for this year. It's really been a buildup my whole four years [at OLu]. I think a goal is to get that championship. And I think it's tangible.”
As a team captain, Goehring sees leadership as a new challenge, but she welcomes the responsibility in leading her fellow Lancers both on and off the field. Her ability to handle each situation with poise and confidence brings the best out in her teammates.
"Morgan is the epitome of an outstanding well-rounded student athlete,” says OLu girls soccer head coach, Sarah Klinkenberg. “Her soccer ability is off the charts…and as a team captain, she connects with every player in the program. Her passion for the game is unmatched, and she will outwork any opponent in her way. She is also selfless in putting the team first time after time.”
Goehring’s love for soccer has taught her several life lessons, including perseverance and a strong work ethic.
“You're going to have ups and downs, and you're not going to win every game,” says Goehring. “And I think that's so applicable to everything that we do in our lives. Everything is not going to work out easy. You have to work for it, and you have to dedicate a lot of your time, effort and your mental capacity to it.”
If she wasn’t playing soccer, Goehring would likely be found on the stage, as she also has a love for singing and is a self-taught piano and guitar player. She hopes to continue playing soccer at the collegiate level alongside studying to become an engineer, a goal she has had since she was young.
Goehring is grateful for her sister, the one who introduced her to the sport, as well as her mother, who is selfless in all that she does. The 18-year old is also thankful to be attending a school where representing the Lancers goes hand in hand with representing Christ.
“Christ is there in whatever we do,” says Goehring. “Whether we win the game or whether we lose the game, he’s going to be there. And so I think balancing the stresses and anxiety of school, soccer and things like that with the understanding of God and the love that God has for us is super important.”