Prep of the Week: Jordan Nowicki & McKenna Baker

(ABC 6 News) — Senior captains of Century Girls Soccer, Jordan Nowicki and McKenna Baker, have helped lead the Panthers to a successful season in 2022.

As the Panthers are near the top of the Big 9 Conference (with wins over inner-city rivals Mayo and John Marshall) the nearly inseparable Baker and Nowicki lead the Big 9 in total offense with both scoring double-digit goals.

“Ever since we both started varsity in sophomore year and right from then we started becoming like really good teammates, chemistry,” Nowicki mentioned. “On the field, we would give each other assists all the time and we were just these sophomores and now here we are as captains it’s great. In the hallways we’re always nice to each other, we’ll talk about the game and practices during the school day it’s super fun.”

“We do pretty good together,” Baker added. “Surprisingly like our positions. Last year we were switched. I was playing her position and she was playing another position where I was at. I like that we adjusted to switching to that and I think wherever we are on the field we always find each other.”

“Definitely distinct personalities but I think that’s what makes them work,” Panthers coach Karen Ladue noted. “If you have two people that think exactly the same way you’re going to kinda get the same result. So when they found a way to figure out how the other one moves, I think one will be strong in one area the other can pick up the pieces and I think that’s what’s made them so good when they work together.”

The ultimate goal for the duo is to hoist that trophy at the end of the year, whether it’s the section championship and/or the state championship. But they are really enjoying these final days of the season.

“A high school season especially is such a short season,” Nowicki mused.”I mean it’s a little over a month. Six weeks so it goes by really fast with three games a week. It feels like just yesterday we had tryouts and so I think we’re taking it all in still and especially with maybe McKenna and I not playing college soccer, it’s our last time really playing for the school so it’s really emotional but we want to go out with a bang.”

“I know for us as seniors we always are saying this could be our last year like we want to make it hard and brag to colleges like ‘Yeah, we were the best soccer team,'” Baker said. “Things like that. Just fun things. We want to know that we had our good memories.”