From the stands, freshman Makenna Staton hears a familiar voice from the crowd that screams words of motivation.
This familiar voice is her mother, Alison Staton, who, along with Makenna, has a role on the team.
With Makenna and the support of her mom Alison, they have both grown to be an important part of the SHS girls’ soccer team.
Although Alison is not a part of the team, she is definitely the parent the team relies on. She has become the definition of a ‘self proclaimed soccer mom’ to the team and especially Makenna.
“You can always hear my cowbell every game there’s a goal scored,” Alison said. “I advocate a lot for them on the sidelines, as far as suggesting to the refs that they maybe didn’t make the right call.”
Whenever Makenna is having a bad day or game, the inspiration of her mom’s words are there to pick her up.
“If I had a bad day and hearing her there, (it) just makes me feel better,” Makenna said.
All the way from the age of four, Makenna started her journey in club soccer and has now advanced to being a freshman on varsity. She wants to be a role model for younger kids and wants to take the next level in soccer.
Going all the way back to middle school, head coach Cory Sandvold always had an eye on Makenna’s potential to be a varsity player. Knowing Makenna had been a part of club teams, he noticed she wanted to become a stronger player.
Although Sandvold knows her abilities, he also wants Makenna to continue to improve on the varsity level.
“I kind of knew already before try outs, how good she was, and she probably was gonna be on varsity,” Sandvold said.
Soccer has always been a hideaway for Makenna and her family. When needing something to cope with, soccer was always the first choice.
It has always brought the positives out in their personality and gave them long-lasting memories.
“No matter (if) we won or lost, everybody would stay positive and in a good mood,” Makenna said. “We had each other to lean on and help each other.”
For Makenna and Alison, they always have game day rituals, such as their routine favorite things like doing hair, getting drinks, and listening to music in the car.
While adapting to a new high school routine, Makenna and Alison will be living through it together.
Through every rough patch Makenna has gone through, her mom was always by her side, and will continue to remain that way.
“Seeing her succeed just makes me happy as her mom,” Alison said.
