One for all - and all for one

The athletic director gazed across his desk. In his hands were the keys to one of the most unsuccessful girls' soccer programs in Southeastern Pennsylvania.

Opposite him sat a head coaching candidate who appeared unlikely to turn things around.

This candidate had never coached at the high school level. A graduate student at Temple University, she didn't even have the time to attend coaching clinics. And though a former high school and club soccer player, she was more known for her softball background.

"But I knew she was right for the job after the second question I asked her," Friends Select School athletic director Tim Litz said of Jen Carlo.

Litz questioned whether Carlo know the history of the Friends Select soccer program.

"She said, 'Yeah, I did research.' It struck a nerve with me," Litz said.

In Carlo, Litz hired a candidate unlike he had ever seen. She had a vested interest in seeing the girls' soccer program succeed.

"She has gone beyond what I expected," Litz said.

What Carlo has done is change the attitude of a program that had been the equivalent of an intramural team.

Still struggling in terms of wins and losses, the Falcons (1-6-1) now possess a sense of team unity that had been lacking in seasons past.

"I am teaching these girls life through soccer," said Carlo, who is determined to turn Friends Select into a winner in three seasons. "But it's about the way these girls can face adversity now, and still have the courage and desire to succeed."

Friends Select has had more than its fair share of adversity this season. The Falcons lost their four Friends School League matches by a combined 29-0 score.

But . . .

"I'm very happy, because all of our other coaches seemed a little lackadaisical before," senior outside midfielder Lindsey Daniel said. "Coaching us seemed like something they came to do after they got off from work and when they had free time. They just did it for fun. They weren't serious about it."

Apparently, neither were a lot of the students.

Unable to attract more than a dozen players, the Falcons were forced to play on the junior varsity level the last two seasons. Even that was somewhat of a joke.

"It was hard for us to be serious," senior center midfielder Maggie McMahon said. "We only had two games [last season.] Actually, we had four games, and two were canceled."

It didn't take long to realize Carlo would bring a different approach. And now the Falcons are back competing at the varsity level.

Carlo has done more than introduce a weight-training program and new level of expectation in practice. The Falcons are ordered to participate in numerous team-building exercises.

Each senior is required to mentor a freshman teammate throughout the season. The seniors must e-mail Carlo progress reports about the rookies.

The coach also supplied the team copies of Go for the Goal: A Champions' Guide to Winning in Soccer and Life. The girls are required to read the book, which was authored by former U.S. women's national team star Mia Hamm.

Friends Select's biggest show of solidarity involved colorful stones and a pail.

At the start of the season, each player had to select a stone that she had to hold onto for the entire season. The players painted their jersey numbers on one of side of the stone. They had to write something inspirational on the other side.

All 26 players on the team put their thumbprints and initials on the outside of a pail.

"Prior to the games, the girls take out their stones and put them into a team pail to signify unity," Carlo said.

Initially, a few players were skeptical of the pre-game ritual. Freshman forward Mariah Burke was one of those.

"But now I kind of feel like it is kind of unifying our team," Burke said. "Me, personally, right before every game, I get pumped and really excited about it."

That's exactly how Carlo wants her players to feel. She believes that in order to build a winner, you must first change team morale.

Litz is confident the approach will bring success to the program.

"It's all in the coach," he said. "When a coach shows this kind of interest, the players start to show that kind of interest, because they know the coach is not just trying to get a paycheck."