Ferrell earns second team all-state honor

SIKESTON -- Jordi Ferrell rebounded from a serious injury and a lost season to be chosen a 2006 second team Class 1 All-Stater.

"I'm really excited and shocked that I was selected," said Ferrell, a Sikeston High School sophomore midfielder.

Ferrell suffered an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear which sidelined her for the entire 2005 season.

In her comeback this past season, Ferrell was a major component, helping the Sikeston Lady Bulldogs to their best-ever record (10-13). She finished third in goals scored with 11 and led the team in assists with eight. Her 19 total points placed her in a tie for the team lead with freshman forward Abbi Keefer.

The addition of Ferrell, along with the emergence of Keefer, allowed the Lady Bulldogs to play a more attacking style of offense.

"Jordi provided a missing piece that we needed, somebody that we could run plays through in midfield, somebody that could control the middle," said Sikeston coach Derrick Long.

"The midfielder is the connection between the defense and the forwards. If you don't have a good connection, then the opposing forwards can just run wild through your defense. Jordi slowed a lot of the action down in the middle.

"She had an amazing year, especially for her first year with us."

Although only a 16-year-old sophomore, Ferrell has a wealth of experience, having played club soccer since the age of nine.

Her superior ball skills stand out on the soccer pitch.

"I think my passing opened up the game and created plays for my teammates," said Ferrell.

But, by her own admission, Ferrell feels that, even with an all-state campaign behind her, she could have been much better.

"Actually, I wasn't very happy with my level of play," she said. "I wasn't myself. I kind of felt out of place after missing my freshman season. Maybe, I didn't feel like I was part of the team. It got better as the season went on, but I wasn't as good as I thought I could have been."

That attitude should be good news for Long and the Lady Bulldogs' future, as Ferrell's upside is unlimited.

Said Long, "She improved each day of practice and in every game and I think she'll be even stronger next year. Jordi's one of those puzzle pieces that you build around."

Post-season honors can be a measuring stick, of sorts, of the progress of a sports program.

In the relatively short five-year existence of Sikeston girls soccer, Ferrell becomes the program's second all-stater. Graduated goalie Audra Wooley was also a second-team selection last year.

"To get second team in your first year out is quite an accomplishment," said Long. "That bodes well for her moving to first team in her junior and senior seasons."

With an eye towards college soccer some day, Ferrell is currently playing for a St. Louis club team. In two weeks, she will attend the Olympic Development Program (ODP) camp, then head to a Chapel Hill (N.C.) camp later in the summer.