SHE SHOOTS, SHE SCORES!  

The Omaha Central Girls soccer team has officially started their season and is currently two and four. This is coach Jen Gillespie’s second year as head coach, and she is continuing to strive for a successful season, putting the “we over me” mentality into how they play.  

For most of the girls’ team this is not the beginning of their season but the time to show off the continual effort and work they have put in during the offseason. Starting in October, assistant coach Casey Denton started fitness conditioning and the team joined a high school girls’ indoor soccer league, where they finished third overall.  

This will be the first generation of Central seniors that Gillespie has been with for all four years, two as an assistant and two as a head coach. “I’m excited to watch them take the reins and make this season theirs, I would love to see them end on a positive note in their four-year careers here at Central,” she said. 

Many of the girls that have been with Gillespie for all four years have had a mentality instilled in them to help better push and advance them throughout the game. This includes a positive mindset and a positive attitude and continually focusing on a “we over me” mentality. “This is a team sport, with a lot of working parts, everyone has to believe in a common goal and do what it takes individually and collectively to achieve that.” 

She believes having a coaching staff that the girls can look up to is beneficial. “I know I grew up with female idols in the game and was lucky enough to be coached by a few, and it literally changed my life, my thoughts and my outlook as a woman and the game,” Gillespie said.  

Whether it is talking about life, college, soccer, or a future career, Gillespie is building an environment where players are encouraged to find a coach that they relate to most, one they feel most comfortable talking and working with. “With our diversity in age range, our life experiences and soccer knowledge, we bring so much to the table for the girls to learn from,” Gillespie said.  

Many athletic teams have coaches creating their own goals for their teams’ season. That is not the approach Gillespie is taking with her team though. “As a coach I like to let the girls decide their goals for the season and then have coaches provide the necessary tools to accomplish them,” Gillespie said.  

At the end of every day a coach can create goals for their team or in this instance have their athletes create their own goals but “at the end of the day, we provide them with some of the best coaching in the state, but they are the ones there day in and day out on the pitch putting it into motion and making the decisions,” Gillespie said.  

Overall, Gillespie said, “I am hoping for a successful season with no injuries and to just have the team have fun and enjoy playing the game.”