Eight games into the season, the women’s soccer team is finding success, thanks in no small part to a new figure on the sidelines.
Kristin Boeker, or “KB,” as she’s known around the team, joined the women’s soccer team this fall and has received nothing but rave reviews for her work.
“We’re very lucky to have her come to the area,” said head coach Denise Lyons.
Boeker has come a very long way, and what makes this such a lucky fit for the program is her extensive résumé.
Before coaching, Boeker lived out her playing career with the Division 1 University of Missouri Tigers, racking up 18 goals and 15 assists and even an appearance on the All-Big 12 Conference second team in 1998.
After her time at Mizzou, Boeker served as an assistant coach at Eastern Illinois University, where she helped steer the Panthers to three consecutive NCAA tournament berths.
Boeker then began her seven-season tenure at the Division 1 University of Texas–San Antonio, where she served as head coach since the team started in 2005.
She guided them to their first Southland Conference championship in 2010.
Boeker and her background are now in Keene, and everyone is perfectly fine with that.
Student Assistant Coach Victoria Tarabelli said that Boeker’s arrival was a bit of a welcome surprise.
“We didn’t really know she was coming, and she came in and had an intensity to her that kind of sparked everyone,” Tarabelli said.
Boeker’s impressive soccer career also comes bundled with a great personality and a passion to win games.
“Kristin has been awesome,” Tarabelli noted. “She comes in early to practice, and girls come in early to work with her, and she gives a whole new level to our team.”
What coach Lyons loves about Boeker coming to the program is how she carries herself around the team.
“She actually jumps into the game during practice…and it’s great for the younger players to see someone play that well,” Lyons explained. “I think she’s a great role model.”
Lyons is particularly excited to learn from her new assistant coach.
“We work very well together. She said in one of her interviews that she wants to learn from me, and I want to learn from her. It goes both ways,” Lyons said.
“Trying new things is important for the team, to keep things fresh, and I think she’s fitting in great right now.”
Boeker’s experience and creativity in practice is what’s impressed younger players like sophomore mid-fielder Ellen Granata.
“It’s good that she came from coaching a Division 1 school, so she really knows what she’s doing,” Granata said.
“She has a lot of good games [in practice], a lot of fun drills and just makes the players want to play more. She’s really creative,” she said.
Don’t let her separation from her playing days fool you, however.
Tarabelli knows first-hand that Boeker is still an athlete.
“Oh she still has it. She will school us if we’re not doing something right,” Tarabelli said. “And she’ll blow right by you.”
Lyons said that Boeker is excellent with the younger players, and with fourteen underclassmen on the team, that is a crucial trait to have.
In her player interviews, she noted how the underclassmen really took a shine to Boeker.
“I like to check in on my players and my freshman and see how they’ve been adapting,” Lyons said.
“And they love the coaches, especially Kristin and I think that’s great. They can really approach her.”
With twelve games left in the season, the team is looking to continue its success and players will keep looking to Boeker to help guide them.
“She’s intense but she’s got a great personality,” Tarabelli said.
“She really wants to see you improve, which is nice as a coach.”
Ray Waldron can be contacted at rwaldron@keene-equinox.com