Lady Pirates set to sail!

Charlestown's Lady Pirates' soccer team is ready to set sail for the first time and its maiden voyage will be a game against Switzerland County on August 22.

It was only a matter of time before Charlestown, which has up to now had a co-educational team under the guidance of coach Richard Stephens, would introduce a girls' squad. The majority of those turning out to play the game in recent years have been female.

In fact, five of the girls from last year's co-ed team are among the 19 strong squad available to newly appointed coach Marcy Satkoski.

It comprises a mix from all grades, with a strong young representation of nine sophomores and four freshman, with three juniors and three seniors adding some experience to the team.

"Everything is going great," coach Satkoski told The Evening News & Tribune. "The girls have fantastic attitudes and have been working very hard to prepare for the fall season. After completing our first week of practice, we are excited to get out there and play to see how we match up against other girls' teams."

Satkoski said they have some dynamic leaders emerging in the group, including co-captains Jordan Dent, Sophie Higazy and Emma Wesp.

Dent, a senior, said she is "very excited" to finally have a girls' team.

"We've wanted this for a long time," she said. "I'll be thrilled to see how this year goes."

Higazy, a junior, said the Pirates are a very strong unit.

"We're all in this together in this and very supportive of each other," she said. "Because we are close, I believe we'll be successful this year."

The third co-captain is sophomore Emma Wesp. She said she wants to see the team grow this year and continue to improve over the next few years.

This is Satkoski's first head coaching job. She was the assistant coach at New Albany for six years under Sara Dickman, and has also coached at SIU. She played at Hanover College, and was a member of Center Grove High School’s (Greenwood, Ind.) varsity team.

Her assistant coach is state trooper Katrina Smith, who was also an assistant at New Albany during Dickman's tenure.