Terkildsen shines in senior
season that wasn’t for WWS
By Chris Walker
Cami Terkildsen didn’t get to play soccer this spring, but she was able to serve admirably in her role as one of the three captains for Wheaton Warrenville South, as well as continue being a good friend to her teammates during challenging times.
One of her best friends wasn’t going to be able to play regardless of the COVID-19 pandemic; fellow senior Meredith Follett tore her ACL right before the season started. In fact, her surgery ended up being delayed due to the coronavirus majorly disrupting the healthcare community.
Amidst the chaos of remote eLearning and anxious teens wondering if soccer was or wasn’t going to happen, Terkildsen didn’t forget about Follett. Rather, there she was like a great, loving friend is supposed to be, offering support before, during and after her surgery.
That’s the kind of person Terkildsen is and is just one example of why she is so well loved by her peers.
“She’s a rock for me,” Follett said. “We didn’t have a lot of the same classes through high school but was my closest friend every single year. It’s nice to have someone to talk to.
“She texted me the day of surgery, right beforehand and brought me lunch over the day after it. She’s a really supportive and positive person who can make me feel better about anything.”
Even during a worldwide health scare like the current one, which ended millions of dreams of high school athletes looking to finish off this chapter in their young lives, Terkildsen was acting selflessly, concerned deeply about her friend and teammate.
“She always has good advice and if she needs to, she’ll crack a joke to make me feel better,” Follett said. “I’m really close with her and Sara Berardi. The three of us hang out a lot. I love being with them, and their families are such good people. There is such good energy between us. I feel better knowing I have them there for everything I need.”
Terkildsen sprained her ankle during tryouts and was out for a couple weeks, so like Follett, she was more of a curious bystander in early March, watching from the sideline as the team was just getting started together before the season was halted.
“I felt like they were doing a lot of good things toward the end of the last few practices,” Terkildsen said. “And most of them hadn’t played with each other so it was going to take some time to understand each other and the styles and weaknesses. We were coming together and had a lot of potential. We were excited to see what we could do with more time.”
Wheaton Warrenville South suddenly found itself with a different squad this year after compiling a 29-13-2 record the past two seasons. The Tigers came into the spring ranked no. 44 in Chicagoland Soccer’s First 50 state rankings, but much was unknown with the team returning only a couple of starters.
Most significantly, kids who were fixtures, three-year and fourth-year players, were among those who departed after last season. Paige Miller, who totaled 41 goals, 25 assists and 107 points, Allie Anderson and her 23 goals and 22 assists, J.J. Aalbue and her 16 goals and 19 assists were among those no longer listed on the roster. And there were other contributors including defenders Maddie Monaco and Maria Dohse and midfielders Audrey Siebert, Evelyn Demsher, Ellery Fahey and Molly Fank.
“We were expecting big things from (Cami), and she got hurt a bit in preseason so that weighed in on that puzzle of what we were going to look like,” Tigers coach Guy Callipari said. “We had (junior) Emma Showman come back. We had not seen her, but she has some pedigree to play at a high level so we wanted to see how those two played together, probably one more offensive and the other more defensive. Cami is more defensive-minded but is capable of getting up field in the final third.”
After seeing a mass exodus of seniors the past two seasons, Terkildsen knew this year was going to be one of opportunity for countless Tigers who were patiently waiting for their big chance, many playing behind a starter from a year ago. Becca Hauenstein and Sam Buol were the only returning starters.
“We graduated so many starting positions, and I think that kept us motivated to keep working hard and to be confident once we got on the field,” she said. “This year my club coach emphasized positions for me. I played outside mid, outside forward and was getting back and getting wide and got a lot better in that vision to cut in and drive balls in, and positioning and stuff.”
Berardi remembers sitting alongside Terkildsen last year, fulfilling whatever role they had at that time while patiently waiting for their opportunity to arrive.
“Last year we had so many seniors that I know she was upset with the amount of time we spent on the bench, but there was nothing you could do about that,” Berardi said. “This year as a senior and a captain, and with so few returning starters, she felt ready. She proved she deserved a starting spot in club season.”
Terkildsen is one of those determined kids who’s going to go out and get what she wants regardless of the challenges that she might encounter in her pursuit. It’s called drive.
“She’s one of the most determined people I have ever met,” Follett said. “She’s spent so much time and effort day-in and day-out regardless if it’s in season or out of season. When I could play and could go to the high school to get extra fitness, she was always up for doing it. She’s always had such a good attitude, and she is incredibly fast so I loved having her on my side. She always came to play, used practice as a time to focus on getting better, and she made practices fun, really pushing everyone to get better.”
She also had the opportunity to practice and play with some extremely talented players prior to this season, which had her well prepared for what could have been.
“She was one the players with multiple years of varsity experience so she had the opportunity to play with talented players around her,” Callipari said. “She’s a really good holding mid and her mentality is she can close ground. She has good distribution skills and can run with the ball.
“It comes down to kind of what you want to do as a team. Do you want to anchor, sit or be on the front foot? She could adapt to all those ideas, and with the leadership she was bestowed, she can run the show a little bit.”
Buol recognized the efforts Terkildsen had put in toward her final season and was expecting her to make big contributions.
“During preseason and the first couple practices, the growth and dedication that I saw Cami put in was so clear,” Buol said. “Cami has always been a speedy girl and a player that cares so, so much about her playing, so knowing that she has speed and care for the game was cool.”
Among the countless things lost this spring was Terkildsen being able to get into the starting lineup and to make an impact. Buol anticipated seeing both of those things become a reality in Wheaton.
“I definitely saw her starting this year,” Buol said. “I know ever since I started playing with her at South, Cami talked about how she wanted to prove herself. Each year Cami did prove herself, that she was capable of doing this, especially when she set her mind to it.”
How does a captain lead a team when the players on the team are uncertain if there’s even going to be a season? That was one of the many challenges Terkildsen and her fellow captains faced this spring. It’s not as if the season was canceled just before the Tigers were set to go on a big team-bonding night, but it was postponed so that it had to be put on hold as the team waited, going online to stay connected.
“We have traditions of going over to someone’s house and having sleepovers and stuff, and I think the last three years when I joined the team these really bring everyone together,” she said. “It’s so sad because we were looking forward so much to it. And even the practices and tournaments and games and stuff like that. You always are making memories so there was a lot we were excited about.”
Thankfully it’s 2020 and technology like the internet and Zoom has allowed the kids to stay in contact. If it were 40 years ago they likely would’ve been passing messages along by phone and been severely limited. At least with the internet and group texting, there are options to stay in touch and immediately. But still, that doesn’t alleviate the frustration that you’re not allowed to play soccer during your senior year.
“We were putting a lot of stuff together for the last few months and super excited to bond as a team,” she said. “We have a lot of new people so it was going to fun to see how we mixed together and how the team came along. We ended up doing a lot of Zoom.”
Becker credits Terkildsen’s organizational skills as being key to their roles as captains during the pandemic since the ways they went about doing things truly was new to them. Seriously, what other captains have had to function via technology rather than in person? Even what they may have learned from Anderson, Dohse, Fank and Miller, who were last year’s captains, wouldn’t apply since this year has been so different.
“She’s been great to have as a captain and you can tell that she had it always together,” Becker said. “She’s always been super hard working and passionate about things. I feel like both Sara (Berardi) and Cami (Terkildsen) have been really good for when it actually comes to planning stuff and logistics. Cami is so reliable. She’s organized for sure.”
Terkildsen is that unique athlete that can connect passes on the field and unite teammates on and off of it, especially in making newer kids feel welcome.
“When someone younger comes in that doesn’t know anyone, someone like Cami will go and talk to them,” Becker said. “I’ve never met someone who doesn’t like her. She’s one of the sweetest people you could know.”
The Tigers hosted a one-time, live, virtual awards night May 28. The program was recognizing 18 first-time varsity letter winners as well as a three-time letter winner in team manager Holly Roach, an unheralded contributor to the program.
“Holly came back knowing as much as anyone and she sits in the inner circle,” Callipari said. “She’s done a tremendous job. I’ve been very comfortable with whatever information she’s put out there on the social platforms.”
After the coronavirus shut down the season, Callipari worried that stormy weather could disrupt the online gathering. Haven’t these kids been through enough?
“The Virtual Award Night went exceptionally well,” Callipari said. “We opened with a welcome to players, parents, to our little sister program ( 48 girls who were invited to be on) the four Hall of Fame girls (Tomek, Bean, Heaton, Radcliffe) were on and friends of Tigers soccer.
“(After an intro video) I talked about our focus without soccer: community; unity; and to honor our senior class.”
Another video about upholding those three goals followed, prior to introductions of the little sisters group, JV 1 and varsity. The junior class read letters to the seniors, who offered their final thoughts about Tigers soccer.
“Thank yous and good byes, tears- laughter!” Callipari said.
“No tech issues on the night -- whew! I enjoyed the process and tremendous feedback from all parties mentioned above.
“In the end it was always about relationships and using soccer to be a catalyst to our priorities of community, unity and our senior class.”
Click here to see the WWS seniors’ graduation video!
season that wasn’t for WWS
By Chris Walker
Cami Terkildsen didn’t get to play soccer this spring, but she was able to serve admirably in her role as one of the three captains for Wheaton Warrenville South, as well as continue being a good friend to her teammates during challenging times.
One of her best friends wasn’t going to be able to play regardless of the COVID-19 pandemic; fellow senior Meredith Follett tore her ACL right before the season started. In fact, her surgery ended up being delayed due to the coronavirus majorly disrupting the healthcare community.
Amidst the chaos of remote eLearning and anxious teens wondering if soccer was or wasn’t going to happen, Terkildsen didn’t forget about Follett. Rather, there she was like a great, loving friend is supposed to be, offering support before, during and after her surgery.
That’s the kind of person Terkildsen is and is just one example of why she is so well loved by her peers.
“She’s a rock for me,” Follett said. “We didn’t have a lot of the same classes through high school but was my closest friend every single year. It’s nice to have someone to talk to.
“She texted me the day of surgery, right beforehand and brought me lunch over the day after it. She’s a really supportive and positive person who can make me feel better about anything.”
Even during a worldwide health scare like the current one, which ended millions of dreams of high school athletes looking to finish off this chapter in their young lives, Terkildsen was acting selflessly, concerned deeply about her friend and teammate.
“She always has good advice and if she needs to, she’ll crack a joke to make me feel better,” Follett said. “I’m really close with her and Sara Berardi. The three of us hang out a lot. I love being with them, and their families are such good people. There is such good energy between us. I feel better knowing I have them there for everything I need.”
Terkildsen sprained her ankle during tryouts and was out for a couple weeks, so like Follett, she was more of a curious bystander in early March, watching from the sideline as the team was just getting started together before the season was halted.
“I felt like they were doing a lot of good things toward the end of the last few practices,” Terkildsen said. “And most of them hadn’t played with each other so it was going to take some time to understand each other and the styles and weaknesses. We were coming together and had a lot of potential. We were excited to see what we could do with more time.”
Wheaton Warrenville South suddenly found itself with a different squad this year after compiling a 29-13-2 record the past two seasons. The Tigers came into the spring ranked no. 44 in Chicagoland Soccer’s First 50 state rankings, but much was unknown with the team returning only a couple of starters.
Most significantly, kids who were fixtures, three-year and fourth-year players, were among those who departed after last season. Paige Miller, who totaled 41 goals, 25 assists and 107 points, Allie Anderson and her 23 goals and 22 assists, J.J. Aalbue and her 16 goals and 19 assists were among those no longer listed on the roster. And there were other contributors including defenders Maddie Monaco and Maria Dohse and midfielders Audrey Siebert, Evelyn Demsher, Ellery Fahey and Molly Fank.
“We were expecting big things from (Cami), and she got hurt a bit in preseason so that weighed in on that puzzle of what we were going to look like,” Tigers coach Guy Callipari said. “We had (junior) Emma Showman come back. We had not seen her, but she has some pedigree to play at a high level so we wanted to see how those two played together, probably one more offensive and the other more defensive. Cami is more defensive-minded but is capable of getting up field in the final third.”
After seeing a mass exodus of seniors the past two seasons, Terkildsen knew this year was going to be one of opportunity for countless Tigers who were patiently waiting for their big chance, many playing behind a starter from a year ago. Becca Hauenstein and Sam Buol were the only returning starters.
“We graduated so many starting positions, and I think that kept us motivated to keep working hard and to be confident once we got on the field,” she said. “This year my club coach emphasized positions for me. I played outside mid, outside forward and was getting back and getting wide and got a lot better in that vision to cut in and drive balls in, and positioning and stuff.”
Berardi remembers sitting alongside Terkildsen last year, fulfilling whatever role they had at that time while patiently waiting for their opportunity to arrive.
“Last year we had so many seniors that I know she was upset with the amount of time we spent on the bench, but there was nothing you could do about that,” Berardi said. “This year as a senior and a captain, and with so few returning starters, she felt ready. She proved she deserved a starting spot in club season.”
Terkildsen is one of those determined kids who’s going to go out and get what she wants regardless of the challenges that she might encounter in her pursuit. It’s called drive.
“She’s one of the most determined people I have ever met,” Follett said. “She’s spent so much time and effort day-in and day-out regardless if it’s in season or out of season. When I could play and could go to the high school to get extra fitness, she was always up for doing it. She’s always had such a good attitude, and she is incredibly fast so I loved having her on my side. She always came to play, used practice as a time to focus on getting better, and she made practices fun, really pushing everyone to get better.”
She also had the opportunity to practice and play with some extremely talented players prior to this season, which had her well prepared for what could have been.
“She was one the players with multiple years of varsity experience so she had the opportunity to play with talented players around her,” Callipari said. “She’s a really good holding mid and her mentality is she can close ground. She has good distribution skills and can run with the ball.
“It comes down to kind of what you want to do as a team. Do you want to anchor, sit or be on the front foot? She could adapt to all those ideas, and with the leadership she was bestowed, she can run the show a little bit.”
Buol recognized the efforts Terkildsen had put in toward her final season and was expecting her to make big contributions.
“During preseason and the first couple practices, the growth and dedication that I saw Cami put in was so clear,” Buol said. “Cami has always been a speedy girl and a player that cares so, so much about her playing, so knowing that she has speed and care for the game was cool.”
Among the countless things lost this spring was Terkildsen being able to get into the starting lineup and to make an impact. Buol anticipated seeing both of those things become a reality in Wheaton.
“I definitely saw her starting this year,” Buol said. “I know ever since I started playing with her at South, Cami talked about how she wanted to prove herself. Each year Cami did prove herself, that she was capable of doing this, especially when she set her mind to it.”
How does a captain lead a team when the players on the team are uncertain if there’s even going to be a season? That was one of the many challenges Terkildsen and her fellow captains faced this spring. It’s not as if the season was canceled just before the Tigers were set to go on a big team-bonding night, but it was postponed so that it had to be put on hold as the team waited, going online to stay connected.
“We have traditions of going over to someone’s house and having sleepovers and stuff, and I think the last three years when I joined the team these really bring everyone together,” she said. “It’s so sad because we were looking forward so much to it. And even the practices and tournaments and games and stuff like that. You always are making memories so there was a lot we were excited about.”
Thankfully it’s 2020 and technology like the internet and Zoom has allowed the kids to stay in contact. If it were 40 years ago they likely would’ve been passing messages along by phone and been severely limited. At least with the internet and group texting, there are options to stay in touch and immediately. But still, that doesn’t alleviate the frustration that you’re not allowed to play soccer during your senior year.
“We were putting a lot of stuff together for the last few months and super excited to bond as a team,” she said. “We have a lot of new people so it was going to fun to see how we mixed together and how the team came along. We ended up doing a lot of Zoom.”
Becker credits Terkildsen’s organizational skills as being key to their roles as captains during the pandemic since the ways they went about doing things truly was new to them. Seriously, what other captains have had to function via technology rather than in person? Even what they may have learned from Anderson, Dohse, Fank and Miller, who were last year’s captains, wouldn’t apply since this year has been so different.
“She’s been great to have as a captain and you can tell that she had it always together,” Becker said. “She’s always been super hard working and passionate about things. I feel like both Sara (Berardi) and Cami (Terkildsen) have been really good for when it actually comes to planning stuff and logistics. Cami is so reliable. She’s organized for sure.”
Terkildsen is that unique athlete that can connect passes on the field and unite teammates on and off of it, especially in making newer kids feel welcome.
“When someone younger comes in that doesn’t know anyone, someone like Cami will go and talk to them,” Becker said. “I’ve never met someone who doesn’t like her. She’s one of the sweetest people you could know.”
The Tigers hosted a one-time, live, virtual awards night May 28. The program was recognizing 18 first-time varsity letter winners as well as a three-time letter winner in team manager Holly Roach, an unheralded contributor to the program.
“Holly came back knowing as much as anyone and she sits in the inner circle,” Callipari said. “She’s done a tremendous job. I’ve been very comfortable with whatever information she’s put out there on the social platforms.”
After the coronavirus shut down the season, Callipari worried that stormy weather could disrupt the online gathering. Haven’t these kids been through enough?
“The Virtual Award Night went exceptionally well,” Callipari said. “We opened with a welcome to players, parents, to our little sister program ( 48 girls who were invited to be on) the four Hall of Fame girls (Tomek, Bean, Heaton, Radcliffe) were on and friends of Tigers soccer.
“(After an intro video) I talked about our focus without soccer: community; unity; and to honor our senior class.”
Another video about upholding those three goals followed, prior to introductions of the little sisters group, JV 1 and varsity. The junior class read letters to the seniors, who offered their final thoughts about Tigers soccer.
“Thank yous and good byes, tears- laughter!” Callipari said.
“No tech issues on the night -- whew! I enjoyed the process and tremendous feedback from all parties mentioned above.
“In the end it was always about relationships and using soccer to be a catalyst to our priorities of community, unity and our senior class.”
Click here to see the WWS seniors’ graduation video!