Photos by Ray Hamill/HumboldtSports.com – Kira Morris, right, was one of five Eureka seniors honored before Wednesday’s game.
By Ray Hamill — The Eureka girls soccer team honored their senior class before Wednesday’s league finale against Arcata at Albee Stadium.
The five seniors — Sydney Madsen, Amelia Staiano, Claire Maples, Kira Morris and Saedra Joseph — all played a key role in the team’s undefeated Big 4 campaign, as the Loggers clinched a first league championship since 2018.
Staiano and Madsen are both four-year varsity players and were freshmen when head coach Tommy Learmouth took over the team in 2019.
“Sidney and Amelia have been here from my first year coaching the team to now, so they’re very special to me,” Learmouth said. “They’re great athletes and even better people.”
Maples joined the team as a sophomore and is a three-year starting goalkeeper.
“She has been exactly what we needed at the back, and has developed into a vocal leader,” the coach said.
Morris and Joseph both joined the team last year and had an immediate impact while developing into two of the most dangerous forwards in the H-DNL.
“Kira and Saedra immediately brought a spark to the offense and a spark to practice,” Learmouth said.
The Loggers tied the Tigers 1-1 and closed out league play with a record of 8-0-1.
They are the top-ranked team in the North Coast Section, according to MaxPreps, and are expected to receive the No. 1 seed for the Division-I field.
The seeds and brackets will be announced on Sunday.
Saedra Joseph (left)
