ACCIDENT — For the first time in the history of the award, the girl’s soccer area Player of the Year hails from Northern.
After a historic career and dominant season, Emma Hostetler was named the area Player of the Year, as chosen by the area coaches.
Mountain Ridge’s Fiona Ruddell finished second while Allegany’s Avery Miller took third place.
Hostetler, along with the other award winners, will receive her award at the 76th Dick Sterne Memorial Dapper Dan Sports Banquet at a date and time to be announced.
“Emma, and our other seniors in the Class of 2025, led our program’s resurgence following a series of exceptionally challenging years,” Gregg Hostetler, Northern’s head coach and Emma’s father, said. “Her legacy as one of the program’s greatest players and a prolific scorer in our region’s history is secure.”
She’s the first Husky to win the award since it began in 1998 and one of three players from Garrett County to do so.
Southern’s Jill Yant won in 2013 and was the last Garrett County player to win, while Sabrina Scheffel tied Bishop Walsh’s Erica Gilles in 2002.
Hostetler has had one of the most accomplished careers in program history, earning four All-Area selections, four first-team All-WestMAC (Western Maryland Athletic Conference) selections and was runner-up for last year’s Offensive Player of the Year.
She led the Huskies in goals for all four years of her high school career and finished with 104 goals and 24 assists.
This season, Hostetler scored 44 times on 75 shots for a 59% shooting percentage.
She added nine assists and was responsible for 54% of Northern’s goals.
Hostetler scored in 15 of 18 games and recorded nine hat tricks.
“Despite opposing teams employing various tactics to stop her, her statistics demonstrate the difficulty in finding success against her,” coach Hostetler said. “Even when double, triple, and quadruple teamed, she consistently managed to score for us. The attention she garnered from opposing defenses created opportunities for her teammates. Many of our goals that she didn’t score were a direct result of the attention she drew from our opponents.”
Hostetler led Northern to an area championship, the first since 2011.
The Huskies finished 14-3-1 and reached the state semifinals for the second time in program history and first since 2007.
Hostetler earned a second-team All-State selection by the Maryland Association of Coaches of Soccer (MACS) and is the fifth area player selected since 2013.
She’s the first area player to earn All-State honors since Mountain Ridge’s Gabby Wolfe was an honorable mention in 2019 and the only one from Garrett County.
“Beyond her lightning-fast speed, Emma’s heart and determination were pivotal to her success,” coach Hostetler said. “She embodied the essence of a pure scorer, leaving everything she had on the field.”
Hostetler will play soccer at Frostburg State in the fall.
The Bobcats have only had 11 players from Allegany or Garrett County play since 2007.
“Emma’s impact on our team was profound, and her contributions will forever be etched in the history of our program,” coach Hostetler said.