Soccer standouts Kelvin Effah and Hannah Sawyer are Hamilton’s one-two punch.
Hamilton High School could end up with the Greater Miami Conference’s top scorers for boys’ and girls’ soccer this season.
Senior Kelvin Effah ranked second on the boys’ side in goals (20) and points (42) last year behind now-graduated Oak Hills forward Zach Moeller, and junior Hannah Sawyer was second among the GMC girls’ players in goals (14) and third in points (32) with both leaders now departed.
Both players have their eye on that top spot, but neither wants the pressure of trying to put a number on what they think it will take to get there.
“I think it’s pretty cool Hamilton could have two of the top scorers,” Sawyer said. “We’re not always known for having the best teams but it just shows we still have good players.”
Sawyer, who is committed to St. Louis University, already is approaching the all-time career scoring record for the girls’ program with two seasons left. Sitting at 27 goals and 10 assists over her first two seasons, she has 64 career points and needs eight goals and seven points to break the records previously set by Emily Phillips, a 2018 graduate.
The records serve as a motivating carrot, but she already has higher goals to improve on her previous seasons. She had 13 goals and six assists in 2017. Chasing records could end up distracting her, she said, but the number she needs is low enough she isn’t too worried about putting unnecessary pressure on herself.
“I’m so excited because I usually don’t get as much recognition for soccer because I play for a high-level club team and it’s hard to be the top one for goals and points and things like that,” Sawyer said. “It’s nice to get recognized for something I did individually.”
Effah, who is uncommitted, just wants to do his best to help his team. He saw tremendous improvement between his sophomore and junior seasons and now just wants to see the Big Blue benefit from whatever individual success he and others might have.
In 2017, Effah had 10 goals and two assists, and he was able to double his scoring production last year.
“I was surprised how well I did because it’s hard to score that many goals in our league,” Effah said. “I just want to help my team win the GMC, improve from last year and hopefully lead the GMC in scoring. The most important thing to me is helping my team.”
Hamilton boys coach Donny Herrington doesn’t doubt Effah can lead the GMC in scoring and goals this year. He believes Effah has the talent to eventually play professionally if he has the drive and desire to get there.
Herrington hopes to help push him to the next level and improve his game in any ways he can this year.
“So long as he keeps healthy and stays on the field, I don’t see any reason he won’t lead the league in goals and points,” Herrington said. “He has a natural ability to be an outstanding player as a whole. I would expect him to perform at that level or above.”
When asked what stands out about him as a player, Herrington said Effah’s speed allows him to separate himself from his peers but his knowledge on the ball helps him to be a top athlete. Now he just wants Effah to focus on building more positional knowledge.
Herrington also is helping Sawyer develop into an even better player. He had Sawyer in class last year and encouraged her to do more conditioning this summer to improve her game, and she took his advice to heart. She consistently has been running with the boys’ team and hopes it pays off this fall.
“Last year, I didn’t do a good job staying in the games, so to improve I picked up running so I can stay in longer and contribute more and be more effective for my team,” Sawyer said.
Big Blue girls coach Josh Sams said Sawyer has “a very high motor” and he hasn’t seen too many players with the “overwhelming break speed” she displays. Adding better endurance could be the key ingredient to an even bigger year for her, he said.
“When she turns it on, there are not a lot of defensive players that can catch up to her,” Sams said. “To have her ability on the ball and that speed, she has power when she shoots the ball and she has power when she moves the ball. She’s got all the intangibles.
“We’ve really improved our schedule in the past five years so when she scores they are earned. They are not against slouch teams, so that makes her special. She carries a lot of weight for us, and we are expecting a big year.”