Freshman Dara Andringa moved here from Madison, WI and is now starting varsity for the girls soccer team, taking away a spot from returning players and scoring a goal in the first game.

Andringa played on an Elite Club National League (ECNL) team as a midfielder, which has helped her prepare her for the girls soccer team. The team she was on helped her because ECNL is the highest level of club soccer a girl can play on from ages 14-18.

Andringa is a strong player on the field and also off the field. The players on the Stillwater girls varsity soccer team have only known her for about 3 weeks, but they already seem to love her.

“Dara is really fun, happy and nice. She always has a smile on her face, and always is making everyone laugh,” senior Lexi Feyen said.

Junior Hannah Beech added, “She’s crazy, fun and has a good personality. She is really easy to get along with and she’s someone the little kids can look up to.”

Andringa took away a starting spot from other returning varsity players. Players were asked how they feel about a freshman in the starting line-up and starting varsity players didn’t seem to care much.

“When you’re on the field age doesn’t matter. You can’t tell the difference between a freshman and a senior,” Beech said.

Feyen added,”It is a good thing because she is a good player. Age is nothing when you’re on the field.”

Moving from a different town there could be a loss of connection with Andringa and the other players. That doesn’t seem to be the case here, in fact the players on the Stillwater girls soccer team seem to like playing with her quite a bit.

“She works hard and has very good technical skills. Her work ethic is unbelievable,” Feyen said.

Beech added ,”I like playing with her way better than past players. Dara and I connect better. She see’s the field really well and is really aggressive.”

Andringa had not expected to start as a freshman on the team, but she hoped to. When she heard her name called she was surprised but mostly very happy. She had to work hard to make it into the line-up with only 3 seniors leaving last year.

“I was getting touches on the ball everyday, along with mentally and physically preparing myself for the running and conditioning.” Andringa said what she did in preparation for tryouts.

“It was very exciting! I couldn’t believe I was actually starting. It showed I can get what I work for” Andringa said about how she felt  when she heard her name called for starting line up.

Andringa moving away from all her friends that she had come accustomed to was hard, but she has came to like the girls here. She is having not too hard of a time transitioning to Stillwater.

“The move was hard leaving my friends and old team, but the girls here are great” Andringa said.

“The other girls are really good,” Andringa said, “but I think I fit in with them just fine. We all have a really good connection.”