By DREW GRANTHUM/Sports Editor

Soccer is a game of numbers. Like so many sports, players who take to the pitch are measured by the number shots they take, goals they score, passes they intercept and shutouts they post, among other categories.

While all are great units of measuring phenomenal players, this year’s Shelby County Reporter All-County soccer Players of the Year lead in a category that can’t be measured in numbers: Leadership.

Indian Springs’ Reeves Duggan and Chelsea’s Britne Holderby have been named Players of the Year because while they more often that not led their teams in statistical categories, they also led their squads by example during the 2014 season.

Holderby, the captain of the Hornets for the 2014 season, made waves as a sophomore by scoring the winning goal in the 2012 AHSAA Class 5A state championship game. In her senior year, she led the Hornets to within two games of returning to the finals, as Chelsea fell in the last seconds of a quarterfinals match with Oak Mountain.

Holderby will move on to continue her career on the collegiate level, having signed a scholarship to play for Penn State University.

Duggan also stepped up when his team needed him, leading Indian Springs to the AHSAA Class 1A-3A state title game. Duggan proved to be a force to be reckoned with on both sides of the ball, helping guide the team to an overall record of 24-2.

In playoff competition, Duggan was a scoring machine. His two goals against Montgomery Academy in the state semifinals help lift ISS to a 4-0 win. ISS took down Randolph in the final, using two goals by Duggan to take a 2-1 win, marking the second state championship in program history.

It is this ability to not only lead their teams in statistical categories, but also the knack of stepping up and provide a spark when their teams needed it all season long that led not only their coaches but those within the county to nominate them for selection.

 

2014 All-County Team — Boys

G: Brad Louis, Oak Mountain

D: Keegan McQueen, Oak Mountain

D: Erik Henze, Spain Park

D: Zach Sharp, Coosa Valley

M: Patrick Carroll, Oak Mountain

M: Austin Bowen, Pelham

M: Taylor Martindale, Chelsea

M: Diego Martinez, Montevallo

F: Will Bevill, Chelsea

F: Mark Green, Oak Mountain

F: Jeff Simonetti, Indian Springs
HONORABLE MENTION

BRIARWOOD: Matthew Wood, Garrett Burks, Christian Chandler

CHELSEA: Robby Haskins

COOSA VALLEY: Austin Brower, Reagan Carpenter, Miles Sharp, Tristan Smith

INDIAN SPRINGS: Rakim Ali

MONTEVALLO: Horacio Martinez, Irving Salgado

OAK MOUNTAIN: Stephen Carroll, Clay McDonald

PELHAM: Alex Owen

SPAIN PARK: Galen Curry

 

2014 All-County Team — Girls

G: Kate Denney, Oak Mountain

D: Marjie McKelvey, Briarwood

D: Hannah Oglesby, Thompson

D: Kathleen Dunn, Oak Mountain

M: Claudia Day, Briarwood

M: Sophie Wilson, Chelsea

M: Julia Pack, Oak Mountain

M: Brittany Yoder, Thompson

F: Amber Harless, Thompson

F: Natalia Alcaino, Pelham

F: Julia Buckner, Oak Mountain
HONORABLE MENTION

 CHELSEA: Megan Young

INDIAN SPRINGS: Josy Gray, Rachel Motamed

MONTEVALLO: Claire Gray

OAK MOUNTAIN: Nealy Martin

PELHAM: Elizabeth Blue, Jacqui Adan, Ashley Gardiner, Emilee Blue