By Sara Page, Midlothian Exchange

spage@midlothianexchange.com

If you are on offense against the James River girls’ varsity soccer team, you cringe to know that you are entering their defensive end. That is the territory of defender Taylor Mertz, who has helped keep the area quiet for three years and is looking to anchor the defense for her fourth year this spring. Though she is one of the top players in the area, Mertz says she may never have discovered her talent if it weren’t for the efforts of her coaches.

“I had a coach who said, ‘If coaches stop yelling at you, they don’t see the potential and they don’t care anymore,’” James River senior soccer player Taylor Mertz said. Mertz says she’s fortunate to have coaches who have never stopped seeing her potential and who have kept pushing her. The little extra nudges helped a recreation league offensive player develop into one of the top competitive defenders in the district.

Mertz earned a partial athletic scholarship to Old Dominion University where she will play in the fall, and according to FC Richmond Director of Coaching and coach of the U17 Magic and Mystx teams Dave Amsler, Mertz’s current style of play will serve her very well with the Monarchs next year.

“She is probably one of the best left backs that have come out of our club on the female side,” Amsler said. “She’s left footed and had the skill and desire to learn and pick up the subtleties of the game. She developed very well.”

Mertz says she started her soccer career as a forward but was moved to midfield and defense pretty quickly. She has a knack for reading the game and opposing forwards as they move toward her, and her ability to kick with her left foot gives her a strong cross when her team is moving forward on offense.

“Putting her at left back is just better for the style of play that we do,” Amsler said. “We like to get our outside backs involved in the attack, and Taylor is better coming forward from a deeper line position.”

Mertz spends most of her year focused on soccer, going to indoor practices and tournaments in tandem with her varsity basketball season at school. She says her style of play hasn’t really changed much as she’s gotten older, but her focus has become more intense.

“I think I’ve gotten more serious,” Mertz said. “I want to win. It’s still fun, but I have more of a drive to win and get better.”

Just as she is serious about soccer, she’s focused and determined in the classroom as well. Mertz is part of the Leadership Program at James River and will be balancing her senior internship with the spring soccer season this year. She also has a partial academic scholarship at ODU. But for all her accomplishments in the classroom, the one success she holds dearest is helping to bring back the Rapid Rowdies – the school spirit club.

“We did bracelets and started getting more kids out to games … It took a lot of time and effort,” Mertz said.

Though she is anxious to start her time at Old Dominion, she is certainly not looking past the upcoming high school season. As a senior, Mertz will be in a leadership role with the team. She says the Lady Rapids lost a lot of positions to graduation last year but are poised to work their younger players into more hefty roles to get the team into contention again. And with Mertz back on defense, you can bet scoring will be at a premium for opponents.