Wiefering wants to lead Ladybirds back to top

Fort Thomas Matters File Photo. Brian Wiefering hopes to lead the Highlands girls soccer team back to the top. Rising sophomore Kiersten Clukey (right) is one of the returning players Wiefering has to work with.

By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM

Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter

The new head coach of the Highlands Ladybirds soccer program is not afraid of high expectations.

There was a time when the Blue and White sat near the top of the state of Kentucky and Brian Wiefering wants to see those days return quickly. Wiefering held his first team meeting Monday after being named the new head coach last week.

“I’m looking forward to a great season,” Wiefering said. “The goals up front are going to be state championship. People are saying (Highlands) has some good players coming up through the pipeline in five or six years. But at the same time, we have good players now. I hope the girls expect to go undefeated. People say, ‘Soccer is a funny game. How can you expect that?’ That’s the way I’ve always played and coached. If you don’t, you learn from it. It’s going to be a challenge for these girls. We’ll see.”

Wiefering, a 1991 Highlands graduate, had been an assistant under Tommy Kearns the past three years. He played at Highlands before going into coaching. He was named the 2013 Club Soccer Coach of the Year by the Kentucky Soccer Association.

“Having the opportunity to coach at the school I went to, played for and coached the past three years is extremely exciting,” Wiefring said. “I couldn’t ask for more. Right when the opportunity rose, I called Tommy (Kearns) to get his thoughts. From there, it didn’t take me long to put my name in the pot.”

Kearns resigned because of an increased workload responsibility at Fidelity. His wife Nina also resigned her assistant coach position. This will mark the first time neither will be on the sidelines at Tower Park since 1997.

“I think some of us expected it and some of us didn’t expect it,” said Brooke Dougherty, rising Highlands senior defender. “I think there will be a lot of changes going from Tommy and Nina’s perspective to Brian Wiefering’s perspective. But I think we’re excited to see how the season will go. I think we have a lot of talent. We had a meeting (Monday) and he planned out the season. We’re excited to see how far we go and I think he will be able to work with the talent we have.”

Highlands dominated the soccer scene between 2005 and 2008 winning the state championship in 2005 and 2006 before finishing state runner-up in 2008. The Ladybirds last won a region crown in 2010. They finished 43-43-13 under Tommy Kearns.

“I don’t think I met two people that cared for the girls as much as Tommy and Nina. That to me is awesome,” Wiefering said. “I’ve coached club (soccer) for many years. I was the same way with the girls I’ve coached. The girls came first in not only their development as soccer players, but as people.”

Wiefering said he learned a huge lesson watching Nina Kearns this past year. She resigned the head coaching position in 2008 to spend more time with the couples’ three children.

“The first one-fourth of the year, the girls were afraid of (Nina Kearns) because she demanded respect,” Wiefering said. “That fear turned into respect then really turned into, ‘We’re going to play hard because we want to do this for our coach.’ I thought that was awesome.”

Highlands finished 8-8-5 last year winning the 36th District championship. The Ladybirds lost 3-0 to eventual state champion Notre Dame in the 9th Region title game. That team graduated eight seniors but will return a good core. That includes rising seniors Taylor Vaughn, Peyton Bankemper, Allyson Bridewell and rising junior Brooklynn Rivers.

“I think as seniors we all tend to get along,” Dougherty said. “We all have a good idea of what we want out of this season. We have a common goal we want to achieve. I think if we go into it focused every practice and every game, Mr. Wiefering said we’ll be fine.”

Wiefering said he plans to run a 4-3-3 (defender-midfielder-forward) scheme. He said it is a 4-2-3-1 scheme in reality.

“The reason it works so well is I’ve had the philosophy that if you control the middle of the field, you should come out ahead,” Wiefering said. “Having three midfielders should beat the 4-4-2 where there’s only two midfielders.”

Another key to success is team chemistry. Wiefering has experience raising teen-aged girls. Wiefering and his wife Heidi have four daughters.

“I have to get to know these girls,” Wiefring said. “But at the same time, I’ve raised my girls to be a certain way. That is to be tough, confident and independent. That confidence means if there is something on your mind or something is not right, you need confidence to have a conversation with peers such as your parents or teacher. That’s what I want to see. But I also know every girls needs to be coached a little different. You can get on one girl hard and she’ll respond to that well. If you do that to another girl, she’s going to shut down on you.”

Highlands did beat the eventual state champion Pandas this past year, 2-1 in the annual Lexington Catholic Cup. That was the first time Highlands beat Notre Dame since the 2010 regional title game. That marked the third title in school history. Notre Dame did not allow a goal in the postseason.

“They are definitely always going to be a strong team,” Wiefering said of the Pandas. “They always have six-plus girls come from the very elite level (club teams). Highlands doesn’t have that because they are involved in more than one activity, which is fine. We’ll have to have very, very focused practices where we are finding girls that are disciplined enough to think their non-dominant foot is technically as capable as their dominant foot. We have to find girls who want to play 90 minutes in a high-paced pressure-type game. Notre Dame is so good that just being fast and athletic is not going to do the job.”

Wiefering said he has not hired any assistants yet. Former Highlands player Kristen Pratt-Gerrein helped out the team in 2012.