Girls soccer notes: Riley Gumm, after a year away, back for one last go-around with Oswego East

Riley Gumm said that she didn’t need much convincing from Anya Gulbrandsen to return to Oswego East soccer, even if it was a compelling case.

The two Oswego East seniors, best of friends, met in first grade and have played together since elementary school, both for school and club teams. As sophomores in 2022, they teamed up to lead the Wolves to the program’s first regional title.

After opting to stick with her club team last spring, Gumm is now back.

“I’ve played with Anya on so many teams, it’s insane,” Gumm said. “It’s our last year, senior year, I think we both mutually wanted one more run together. That’s all I wanted to hear.”

It’s music to the ears of Oswego East coach Juan Leal.

With Gumm and Morgan Dick – who opted to run track last spring – back in the fold, the Wolves are off to a 6-4 start.

“I think we’re in a good place,” Leal said. “I know the record doesn’t show it, but we have grown a lot. Just figuring out our lineup, figuring out our holes, getting things in preparation for the postseason. We have learned a lot which was really good.”

Gumm, a senior midfielder who will play collegiately at San Diego State, was really good her first two seasons at Oswego East, with 14 goals and eight assists as a freshman and 13 goals and 18 assists her sophomore year. After a year away from the program, Leal said she’s even better with six goals and seven assists. She’s Oswego East’s all-time leading assists leader.

“One of the biggest things is her confidence. I don’t want to say she knows she’s good, but she knows she’s good,” Leal said. “She is fast, she has matured a lot on the field, she has learned to take on those players one-on-one and is super crafty with the ball. Se can shoot, she can distribute, she is a top-notch player.”

Leal sees the same goofiness in Gumm, the same inner child that just loves the game, but is also super competitive and a great influence on Oswego East’s younger girls.

“Having Riley back, it has opened up a lot on our field,” Leal said. “When you see opposing girls gravitate toward her, it leaves other girls open and gives them opportunities to create and it gives them confidence. She brings such a level of competitiveness to the team, she brings a lot of knowledge talking to the girls at halftime. The girls are learning a lot from her which is awesome.”

Younger girls like sophomore midfielder Ashley Gumm, Riley’s younger sister, who she’s relished playing with along with her best friend.

“I think I’m similar in a lot of ways to the player I was two years ago, but at the same time I’ve definitely grown a lot,” Gumm said. “Last year I took the time, I stayed with my club, did my thing, focused on a few things that I wanted to improve on. From that aspect I’ve grown a lot physically and mentally.

“I’m lucky to have this opportunity to come back as a senior and be a leader for the younger girls. It’s nice having younger girls around me with the same mindset.”

Plano freshman closing in on record

First-year Plano soccer coach Justine Houchins had heard rumblings when she took the job about one of her incoming freshman, but she didn’t know of Analia Ortiz until she made her first impression at open gyms in January.

“She showed up and she’s in a full Galaxy [Soccer Club] kit and I was like ‘Who are you?’” Houchins said. “I had seen her around school, but I wasn’t aware how good she is.”

People are fast becoming aware.

Ortiz in the last week scored four goals in a game against Westmont, and five against Hinckley-Big Rock. She has 15 goals on the season, already tying the single-season record set by Arieanna Accidentale in 2014.

“I didn’t know her super duper well. She is a freshman, and she didn’t play for the middle school program,” Houchins said. “The fact that she is only a freshman is amazing. The amount of growth that she can still do is astounding.”

Ortiz has played soccer since she was around five years old, when she started with a team with Calvary Church. Her dad, who also played, got her into it, and she later joined the Galaxy club program. Now she plays for the Evolution.

Houchins, who played in high school at Streator, said Ortiz’s confidence on the ball is striking.

“When we have played competitive teams she will dribble through the entire defensive line with ease. That is crazy to me,” Houchins said. “You don’t see that often from a freshman. I have never seen that before, especially at Plano. She stands out for our program.”

Houchins has a freshman and junior-heavy team, with many of the juniors in their first season on varsity. Ortiz has quickly become a leader on the offensive side.

“She’s been a lot of fun to coach,” Houchins said. “You get a player with a lot of experience, it’s interesting to see the dynamic, the mindset of how they have been coached. She is an extremely coachable person. She’s 14, she gets frustrated at times but I have seen a lot of growth in her.”

So far, so good for Oswego

It would have been easy to wonder just how good Oswego could be this season, after graduating all-time leading goal scorer Anna Johnson. Just four seniors were back from last year’s team, and the back line is almost exclusively sophomores.

The progress report? So far, so good.

The Panthers are 5-2-4, with their lone losses to quality squads Metea Valley and Hinsdale Central by 2-1 scores. On Monday, Oswego played Waubonsie Valley to a 1-1 draw.

“I think we’re doing pretty good,” Oswego coach Gaspar Arias said. “The girls are creating the chemistry that is required for us to be a good team, and getting to know each other. You can tell we’re improving.”

A big reason for Oswego’s continued success is getting girls back who couldn’t go last season. Junior midfielder Dahlia Fuentes was hurt last season, junior Aubrey Eirich came from California, junior midfielder Natasha Lopez tore her ACL in the first game and sophomore forward Jordyn Washington also tore her ACL.

“Now we have all of those players back and we are able to create more chances for our striker Jordyn,” Arias said. “Anna had to do it all by herself a lot of times last year. We definitely miss Anna, but Jordyn is helping us out and has scored in almost every game, Natalie Braun and Grace Braun are two very skilled players that are helping us and Gillian Young is one of our strongest players, stronger than ever.”

Leading the back line is sophomore Peyton Johnson, Anna’s sister.

“She is very mature and smart for her age,” Arias said. “Next year she will be a junior and those girls will be older. I think our back line will be one of the strongest.”