By Richard Smith

West Valley Preps

Beyond the scoring records and winning records, Mari Labansat and Jordan Lafferty achieved a larger accomplishment in their four years.

The seniors have made Shadow Ridge girls soccer a thing.

The Stallions played their final regular season game Tuesday night at Willow Canyon. Visit West Valley Preps on www.yourvalley.net later tonight for a game recap.

The rivalry game against the Wildcats is a fitting finale. Before Labansat and Lafferty arrived, top girls soccer players in Surprise almost invariably went to Willow Canyon.

“Not to sound overconfident but this team has changed completely since me and Jordan have come. It’s just been me and her since the beginning doing a lot,” Labansat said. “It feels good knowing teams that used to beat us 10-0 are afraid of us now. They know it’s going to be a good game. I remember whenever we played Willow they never thought we would be any good.”

Girls soccer coach John Gray has been at the school since it opened and has served as the girls varsity head coach every year, except for 2014-15, when Labansat and Lafferty were freshmen.

Still, he heard about their skills before they took their first class. Lafferty was running cross country early in the morning at the school the summer before her freshman year.

“Then she’d go with us to do some weightlifting. Then we’d do some ballhandling stuff stuff and she was blowing everybody out of the water,” Gray said. “Coach (Jeremy) Hall knows Mari and we heard some rumors that she was going here and there and stuff. We found out she was coming here and I knew both of them would be on varsity before their freshman year.”

The duo had never met before freshman year. Labansat exploded onto the scene with 18 goals in her first year as the Stallions girls soccer team finished 7-9.

She cranked it up a bit more as a sophomore, with 22 goals. Lafferty led the way for her and a new striker, freshman Rachel Young, providing 13 assists for a 10-8 Shadow Ridge team.

“I tell Mari she scored more goals in our freshman and sophomore year than our entire program prior to her combined,” Gray said.

Entering the game with the Wildcats, Labansat had a career record 54 goals. She would likely have passed the 70-goal mark if not for a torn ACL wiping out her junior season.

Lafferty stepped up her offense in Labansat’s absence, leading Stallions girls soccer with 17 goals and 16 assists. Most of those passes fed Young, who chipped in 16 goals.

Shadow Ridge finished the regular season with a program-best 11-6 record. Under the new AIA format, the Stallions girls soccer squad played Verrado in a 5A playoff game, falling 1-0.

“It was really hard watching them from the bench because I saw it was a solid team and we were going to go far. I was hoping that it would be our year to go to the playoffs,” Labansat said. “I think we can go far this year.”

This season started off with promise, though Young is committed to her club team — SC del Sol — and not on the roster. The team got off to a 8-5-1 start in non-league play.

Lafferty leads with eight assists and is a close second with 12 goals. Labansat paces the squad with 14 goals and chipped in five assists.

“It shows on the field too. Usually if I score, you assist and if I score, you assist,” Lafferty said.

Beyond their natural skills, Gray said, the duo deserves credit for leading the program where it is going. He said when they started, the varsity probably had four club players. Now, maybe three Stallions do not play for a club.

Lafferty also is the No. 1 student in the class of 2018. The varsity averages 3.9 GPA.

“Jordan has gotten more vocal over the years. She was more quiet as a sophomore. Both of them lead by example with what they do on the field and their grades,” Gray said.

Like last season, the Stallions’ schedule is back-loaded. Shadow Ridge played well Jan. 12 on senior night against Liberty, but lost 2-1, Road defeats to Queen Creek and Centennial followed.

The team entered the season finale ranked No. 21 in 5A and probably looking at a road play-in game either way.

“I’m looking forward to proving that Shadow Ridge can go to the playoffs. I want us to leave a mark on this school. I think it would be a really good way to graduate,” Labansat said.

Gray said opposing teams are taking Stallions girls soccer more seriously, and Young is missed. But the consensus is, the team has improved.

“We’ve gotten a lot better, not just play-wise but as a team. We do team bonding, which helps us a lot in the games,” Lafferty said.

Labansat is a Paradise Valley Community College commit. After two years with the junior college powerhouse, she wants to continue her college career and study sports medicine and athletic training.

Lafferty has a couple more college visits and wants to decide by the end of January. She wants to study computer engineering.

“It’s been a complete turnaround. We’ve gotten better record-wise, skill-wise and like Jordan said, the camraderie of the players,” Gray said. “The leadership they’ve brought the last two years has brought the team together. It’s going to be hard to fill their shoes next year but they’ve set the program on the right track.”

Shadow Ridge senior Jordan Lafferty dribbles the ball during practice Jan. 17. She is the leader in assists in the history of the Stallions girls soccer program. [Jacob Stanek/West Valley Preps][/caption]