A year ago, The Morning Journal coverage area had four All-Americans between boys soccer (three) and girls soccer (one).
Of the area’s seven all-region winners, four were named All-Americans on Dec. 5 by the United Soccer Coaches for the fall of 2023.
Bay once again flexed its soccer might, with boys senior midfielder Milo Hignett earning the prestigious honor, while Bay girls soccer’s superstar junior Tessa Knapp nabbed her second straight All-American bid.
Following a 50-goal campaign in 2022 for her first All-American recognition, Knapp – a Notre Dame commit – followed it up with 58 goals and a career-high 16 assists. Through three seasons, Knapp has 148 goals, placing her ninth on the all-time OHSAA career list. She joins Joy Aschenbrener and Judi Aschenbrenner as the third Bay girls player to earn multiple All-American nods.
There’s pressure and expectations on the former Morning Journal Player of the Year, with eyes on her and what Knapp does. Even so, she’s able to manage them and still perform at a high level on the pitch.
“Tessa’s a special person and yes, there’s always eyes on her,” Bay girls coach Beth English said. “She can get frustrated at times, but she doesn’t let people know that. She keeps working hard and doing what she needs to do to get where she wants in life. Tessa’s got some life goals, and she’s heading in the right direction to accomplish all of them.”
Flipping over to the boys side with Bay’s Hignett, while his 15 goals and 15 assists don’t pop off the stat sheet for some, it’s the midfielder’s ability to draw players in and create opportunities that make him such a dynamic player. Even if they don’t translate into stats, that’s the respect that teams have to give to his playmaking abilities.
“It’s very hard sometimes to ignore someone that’s statistically a giant,” Bay boys coach Bobby Dougherty noted, going on to explain a more critical factor that the Rockets needed from Hignett this year for a very inexperienced Rockets side.
“Very simply, things we needed from Milo this year were leadership qualities. We needed the ability to get the group together was the most important asset he could bring to the table – and he did. That part of his game excelled so much, it was amazing. He truly was a leader on the field and off for us.”
Bay wasn’t the only school with good news to share. Rocky River junior forward and Morning Journal 2023 girls soccer player of the year Sophia Sindelar earned the All-American nod, along with Avon Lake senior forward Ella Grode.
Sindelar posted 59 goals and 19 assists, good for 137 total points on the way to the Division II state title match and named the state’s Player of the Year in Division II by the OSSCA. The Florida commit always had a team-first attitude and a joy for the game, with her ability to elevate others among the qualities that helped make a good team into a great one.
“The strength of any team I’ve ever worked with – your stronger players are the ones that make everyone else around you better,” Rocky River coach Patrick Hopkins said. “And Sophia, as well as other girls (at Rocky River), they do that. Sophia is an amazing talent, and so are the others. People ask all the time how the season ended up for me and I said, ‘It’s amazing!’ because (Sophia and the girls) cared for each other and worked for each other.
“Their laughter and the way they went about every single day is something special, and Sophia was a big part of that. To see that same smile, the same joy no matter who scores the goal, they’re all jumping in each other’s arms, and that’s something that I’ll always remember.”
Grode, signed to play at Eastern Kentucky in the fall, put up 52 goals for 127 total over her four-year career, putting her in a tie for 32nd all-time on the OHSAA career goals scored leaderboard.
Brian Salco has had Grode as a player for four of his five seasons coaching Shoregals soccer. He was “fortunate” to congratulate the senior, who was “absolutelty thrilled” with the news. Given their relationship the last four years, her response to Salco meant so much more than most.
“One of the first things Ella said to me was thank you. I returned the same words back to her just as fast. It was an absolute honor to be Ella’s coach,” Salco said.
“This is such an amazing honor not only for her, but for our school and our soccer program. We have young players who have goals and aspirations to follow in her footsteps. I think the neatest part about this is that Ella definitely made us a better team and program while she was on our team, but my hope is that she will continue to make us better with what she has left behind.”
The area’s all-region selections – including the four All-Americans – on the girls side were Rocky River girls soccer’s Ava Patti and Avon’s Ariana Vakos. North Ridgeville’s Logan Margolin was an all-region selection on the boys side.
