Cape girls’ soccer is shut down for now, but hope lingers

Cape girls’ soccer coach Patrick Kilby was walking from the Cape rotunda on the morning of March 26 carrying boxes from his classroom. Kilby is known as a relentless planner. He was getting prepared to go online to teach his classes until at least May 15.

“I already sent a proposed 10-game schedule followed by an open tournament ending with a state championship if the state allows us to restart,” Kilby said. “I feel bad for our seniors, and I think we were going to have a good year.”

Soccer has seven seniors on the roster. There are 39 combined players on the varsity and junior varsity rosters. Girls’ lacrosse, with 11 state championships in a row, has the same number of rostered players and seniors.

Girls’ soccer posted an 11-4 record in 2019 and made the state tournament. The 2018 squad, also a tournament team, went  8-4-2. 

Retired guidance counselor John Myers was Cape’s first soccer coach 24 years ago. The sequence of varsity head coaches following Myers has been Randy Redard, Myers for a second run, Robin Corrozi, Gary Montalto, Bob Dieterle, Jay Ashby and Kilby.  

Kilby was head coach of both boys and girls for seven years at Sussex Central before coming to Cape. This is his third year at the helm of the girls’ team and his fourth as head coach of the boys’ squad. Kilby teaches physical science and earth and space science. 

Dieterle came to Cape from Spaulding, where he coached to an 11-year record of 172-24-21, including his 19-0-2 team ranked No. 1 in the Metro DC area and fourth nationally by Rivals.com. The Cavaliers reached No. 1in the country in the NSCAA and ESPN polls on two occasions. 

Montalto retired to the Cape Region after coaching boys’ soccer for 31 seasons at Arlington High School in New York, amassing a record of 562-83-43. He coached the Cape boys in 2011 (11-2-2), 2012 (11-4-1) and 2013 (15-2-0). Coach Mont filled in for a year as Cape girls’ coach in 2012 and led the team to a record of 7-8.  

No downstate team has won a state title in girls’ soccer. The Padua Pandas, winners in 2019, have won the Division I state title 10 times since 2006. Caravel, the 2019 Division II state title winner, has won the title five times since 2014.

The Caesar Rodney Riders have lost in the D1 state title game seven times since 2007. Indian River, a D2 team, has lost in the state finals twice. 

Cape has had some great players over the years, including Erin Williams, who was Delaware’s Player of the Year in 2003 and a four-year starter at Drexel, and Lydia Hastings, who left her senior season for Maryland as a gray shirt and started all four years for the Terrapins. 

Cape’s seven seniors on the 2020 squad include Paige Ballance, Lily Judd, Sydney Zych, Cara Thomas, Lexi Bickleman, Selena Purata and Madi Nichols.