Quincy's Hollenbaugh sets sights on record as Orioles win ISL Soccer Championship

QUINCY – After two goals Monday night, Quincy senior Sammy Hollenbaugh inched one step closer to a goal she set years ago, and in doing so she helped lead her Orioles squad to an Independent Soccer League (ISL) conference championship.

Those two goals by Hollenbaugh not only helped Quincy to a dominant 8-0 win over the Springport Spartans, wrapping up the ISL conference title for the Orioles, but they also brought Hollenbaugh’s career goals scored to 79, just one away from her ultimate goal of 80 career goals over a three-year span. Hollenbaugh’s 79 career goals puts her firmly in first place on the Quincy All-time scoring list.

“Goals are nice, but I am thinking about the team and what I can do best to help us win,” Hollenbaugh said. “I am just trying to do whatever I can to not let my team down.”

Hollenbaugh took the all-time scoring record from someone remarkably familiar, as her older sister Emily held the crown just a few years back. Now that her little sister sits on the throne there is a little bit of a sibling rivalry going on there.

“I definitely like to pick on her (Emily) a little bit, not only did I move into first place on the scoring list, but we were also able to win a district title when she never did,” Hollenbaugh said. “She definitely helps push me to be a better player.”

As Hollenbaugh chases 80 career goals there is another mark she has yet to attain, as she chases down the record for most goals in a season. Hollenbaugh currently sits at 23 goals for 2024 and is trying to beat the single season set by Kallie Glei with 30.

“I set goals for myself early in my career and my coach has just been giving me milestones to reach and continue to strive for,” Hollenbaugh added. “I may have broken the record, but I have been dealing with a bit of an injury and I missed some time with that and an illness. But my goal is to get us the win and to get us that district title, although the goals are nice.”

The short time missed has allowed several other stars to step forward for Quincy, most notably a pair of freshmen who work on the front line along with Hollenbaugh.

“True freshman Laura Bostic and MacKenzi Maynard have been getting more confident over time and once they got over that learning curve, wow, just watch out. I just cannot wait to see what their careers have in store for them,” Quincy coach Ivan Swift said. “Having someone who plays as well as Sammy (Hollenbaugh) does, I mean we run everything through her, so the younger girls are able to learn a lot coming from her.”

The Hollenbaugh effect was in full force Monday night, as added to Hollenbaugh’s two goals was teammate Abby Hinds with two goals and an assist. Also scoring for Quincy was Laura Bostic and Sade Harges with one goal and one assist each while Tessa Henry and MacKenzi Maynard each added a goal.

Having claimed the ISL conference title the Orioles now have their sights set on the Michigan High School Athletic Association (MHSAA) postseason, where they hope to win their second straight district title.

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“It is a tough district, but we faced a tough conference schedule with Lenawee Christian and some other teams,” Swift added. “We are playing so well up front and through the middle, and our back line, despite battling injuries, is just playing great. I am really looking forward to what we can do over the next couple of weeks.”

In short, the Quincy Orioles are far from done, as an ISL conference title is not enough for this hungry bunch of Orioles. With laser focus a district title sits squarely in Quincy’s sights, and leading that team is an all-around playmaker in Hollenbaugh who has her sights set on her own goals, seven of them to be exact.

This article originally appeared on Coldwater Daily Reporter: Quincy's Hollenbaugh closes in on record as Orioles win ISL Soccer title