Meeting her goals
Nazareth senior Abby James is a natural scorer
To describe his senior standout, Abby James, Nazareth coach Copeland “Ziggy” Lewis chooses the words “easygoing,” “kind” and “patient.”
Lewis also said, “Abby is not a real vocal leader, but her lead-by-example mentality in drills, in the weight room or in our games is one of the best I’ve ever seen. She’s very competitive too.”
A chameleon, James is a real delight off the field and a terror on it. She capped a brilliant scholastic career with an outstanding senior season, scoring a Lehigh Valley-best 23 goals to go along with 14 assists while captaining the Blue Eagles to a 13-1 season and a spot in the District 11 Class 4Achampionship game.
James, who plans to continue her soccer career at East Stroudsburg University, is The Morning Call’s Girls Player of the Year.
“Of course, we wanted to win the championship; that’s why we play,” said James, referring to a 2-0 setback to Parkland in the district’s 4A battle of unbeatens. “But no matter the result, it doesn’t define our team or us individually as athletes. I am extremely proud of the girls and all wehave accomplished.
“This team has always been another family to me. Coach Ziggy and the coaching staff have helped us build this family atmosphere and I will never forget and will be forever grateful for.”
From the time she started to dribble the soccer ball as a youngster, James has been a natural at scoring.
Her ball-handling skills in one-on-one situations, plus her fitness, speed and determination all are attributes that helped turn James into the area’s No. 1 offensive threat, Lewis said. James compiled 62 goals and 52 assists as a four-year varsity player at Nazareth.
She admitted there’s a certain thrill that comes along with scoring a goal or setting one up.
“For me, there’s this ‘in-the-moment’ type of rush,” said James, whose younger sister, Kylee, also was a key contributor for the Blue Eagles. “It’s also a sense of accomplishment for all the hard work I have put into the game and it’s the reward
I enjoy giving back to my coaches and teammates who have helped me along the way.”
It has certainly been a fun
ride for James, a high-honor roll student at Nazareth with a 3.4 GPA. She’ll always look back on her high school years fondly.
“It’s been a blast,” she said.