By Lorelei Meissner

The future is bright for Lopez High School sports, a future as bright as the skies entering this 2024 Fall season. There are some familiar faces among the coaching staff, and new trails to blaze. This season will be the first ever when Lopez soccer will not be coed. This year there are eighteen players on the Lady Lobos team, the most of all the fall sports. The Lady Lobos will be coached by Lobo soccer alumnus Galen Westervelt. For Coach Westervelt, as a first time coach, as well as for the team, this is a very exciting year.

With a new athletic director in Ginger Plum, the year promises to be especially important for the Lopez soccer program. Being able to support both boys and girls varsity teams—leaving behind the traditional coed team—will give a long overdue opportunity to so many girls, many who have already shown so much dedication to Lopez athletics. Having a girls team will be enormous for the senior girls, before they move on from Lobo sports. They will now have the space and the chance to compete against those with similar composition and aspiration. This also provides an opportunity for the boy’s team to embrace the competitive spirit, with a smaller bench to back them up.

Coach Westervelt commented: “As the girl’s coach, I could not feel more lucky to have such a cohesive, hardworking, and positive group of young women to work with. One of our main goals this year will be to create a team culture that young Lopez girls will be excited to be part of in the future. We hope that the Lopez community will be eager to continue to support these teams from this year forward. Additionally, we look to make an example of the success that can come from the hard and dedicated work that, over the last four years, so many of these young women have already put into this program. I am excited to witness our Lady Lobos completing a successful regular season, with the hope of seeing them into the postseason. We look forward to seeing you all out on the pitch on match day!”