Camden Hills High School’s high-scoring striker Emma Gutheinz knew her senior season would provide her and her teammates with a unique challenge.
After spending many seasons in Eastern Maine Class B, the Windjammers would be playing in Class A this fall.
So she changed her summer training regimen.
“I ran a lot. It was like training for a half-marathon,” said Gutheinz. “I wanted to play all 80 minutes of every game, and I wanted to play without getting tired. So I built up as much endurance as I could.”
It has paid off.
Gutheinz had a team-leading 12 goals entering a Tuesday game against Messalonskee of Oakland and now owns the career record for goals at Camden Hills with 55. She also had six assists.
Camden Hills took a 4-0 record into the Messalonskee game.
She said the goal-scoring record “wasn’t even in my horizon my freshman year.”
“I didn’t know what the record was until someone told me at the end of last season that I was getting close to it,” said Gutheinz. “It’s really awesome. I’m hoping to hold onto it, but I know we have some strong freshmen.”
Gutheinz fell in love with soccer at an early age and played on boys teams for several years.
“I love the team aspect of the sport,” she said.
She feels she has improved every year.
“I’ve developed more confidence, and I know my skills have gotten a lot better,” said Gutheinz who plays for the Bangor-based River City Soccer Club during the offseason.
“I love playing for River City. I’ve been with the same team for a couple of years now. It has been great,” said Gutheinz.
“She has been playing soccer year-round since the eighth grade,” said Windjammer coach Meredith Messer. “She has really improved her touch and game awareness. This year, she has done a much better job finding the open space so she’s in the right place to receive a pass and score.”
“Emma works very hard off the ball,” said junior midfielder Charlotte Messer, Meredith’s daughter. “And she is an all-around leader. She helps everybody else get better.”
Gutheinz is quick to credit her teammates for her success during her high school career.
“I have a lot of faith in my teammates. I know if I make a run, they’ll get the ball to me,” she said.
The Messers and Gutheinz are enjoying their first season in Class A. They had outscored their opponents 38-3 entering the Messalonskee game and had an impressive 4-3 road win against perennial contender Brunswick, the Dragons’ only loss.
“I was quite nervous going into Class A. But we’ve held our own. I’m really proud of our team. We’ve had some battles,” said Gutheinz. “It has been exciting because we don’t know what to expect.”
“It has definitely been a new experience,” said Charlotte Messer, the team’s second-leading scorer with seven goals and eight assists. “We’ve adjusted to it. I enjoy playing the higher competition.”
“It’s fun playing new teams,” said Meredith Messer, who is in her 20th season guiding the Windjammers. “I am really happy that the girls have embraced the challenge. They have played real well.”
Nine Windjammers have scored at least a goal.