The Danvers High School Varsity Girls Soccer Team has been extremely patient this October. While their
rivals from the NEC have already played a couple of games already, the Danvers Girls just finished up their pre-
season this past weekend. They are scheduled to play their first game next Friday, October 16 at Swampscott,
5:45 PM start. With 12 players back from a year ago and many of them having started last year, the Falcons
have high expectations of playing good soccer and being very competitive. Here’s a look at the roster…
Danvers biggest strength this season will be their experience and leadership. Leading the way will be 2 senior
co-captains, Livvi Anderson and Riley DiGilio. Both have been on the varsity all 4 years and were important
role players on the State Championship Team their freshman year. Anderson will play center back where she is
a returning All League player and was a member of the All State Team a year ago. “Livvi is certainly one of
the stronger defenders in the state. She’s as good as they come. Her athleticism is through the roof and when
you look up leader in the dictionary, I think it has her name.” Anderson will continue her soccer career at
Colgate next year. DiGilio will play an attacking role for the Falcons. Last year she scored 16 goals while
dishing out 17 assists. While she’ll be taking her soccer talents to St. Anselm’s next fall, the Blue and White
will be relying on her to provide offense again this season. “Riley has amazing touch with the ball at a very
high pace. She’s super unselfish and excels at setting up her teammates.” DiGilio was an All League player
and EA MA all star last year.
The experience doesn’t stop there. Mia Jordan is back for her third year in the center of the midfield. She’ll
play alongside classmate Julia Vaillancourt who will provide the team with strength and grit in the middle.
“Mia and Julia have looked fantastic in pre-season. Mia is such a creative player with the ball. When we get
her the ball, good things happen. Julia is a big presence for us winning 50/50 balls. She can play physical or
finesse and makes great runs off the ball. Avery Scharffenberg returns at center back to play alongside
Anderson. “Avery gives us great versatility. She plays so well in the back, but is also completely comfortable
playing in the midfield where she plays on her club team. She is a very smart player who makes great decisions
when the pressure is on.” Goalkeeper Holly DeAngelis returns for the third year, but this will be her first as a
starter. “Holly has been patient playing backup to Kylie MacCormack the past two years. Holly works
extremely hard and I feel she’s primed for a big season. She was phenomenal in our only scrimmage vs.
Pingree.” Haley Murphy rounds out the 7 returning seniors as a forward. “Haley is one of the fastest 300
runners in the state in track. Her speed is awesome. She’s a tough person to mark because of that speed and
she has great vision to find her teammates on offense.” New to the varsity this year is Izzy Donahoe who will
play forward. She has looked very strong in pre-season so far and could give the Falcons some energy up top.
All 4 juniors on the team return from last year. Arianna Bezanson was an All League player, All New England
and League MVP as a sophomore. The Colgate commit had 20 goals and 11 assists last year. “Ari does it all
for us. She is an outstanding attacking player. She’s gonna score or set others up, but she also defends with the
same passion. She’s a special type of athlete and extremely humble about it. It’s pretty amazing having 2
future Colgate players on the same team.” Reese Pszenny rounds out the Danvers 4 returning all stars from a
year ago. She was a major weapon for the Team a year ago on offense with her size and skill with the ball.
“Reese has amazing control of the ball. Her juggling record is over 1,000! When we juggle in practice we have
to stop her because it will take up the entire training session.” Gabby Chisholm and Emma Dunn return on
defense. Chisholm was a starter at outside back a year ago. “Gabby’s aggressiveness is fantastic to watch.
She’s first to the ball all the time. She never stops going 100 percent. Emma has looked very aggressive so far
as well in the back. She tackles well but also has great instincts with the ball on her foot.”

Sophomore defender Mikayla Shaffaval rounds out the returners for the Falcons. She will play outside back
on the opposite side of Chisholm. “Mikayla has looked amazing in pre-season so far. She’s grown so much as
a player from a year ago. It’s easy to see how hard she worked this off season.”
6 new sophomores join the team this year, all whom played on a DYS team that reached the State Finals a few
years ago. Emily Goddard is the second keeper on the team and looks confident in goal so far. She will learn
from and push DeAngelis so they’re both at their best. Teagan Price and Courtney Hinchion will play
midfield and give the Falcons two very fit players that make good runs off the ball and do well to keep
possession. Katie Walfield will play both forward and mid and plays with great first touch and passes the ball
extremely well. Eliana Anderson, younger sister to Livvi, looks like she’ll provide a strong offensive spark to
the team with her terrific speed and aggressive style. Ryley Crosby rounds out the sophomore crew at outside
back. She plays at a ferocious pace and never slows down. She will be a great addition to the defensive crew.
“Our newcomers came into pre-season in extremely good shape and have a very high work rate. Their
motivated and will help us along the way.”
2 freshmen have made the Varsity unit this year. Kacey McDonough and Reese Holland, both defenders, are
ready to take their game to the next level. “Neither Kacey or Reese look like a typical freshman. They’re both
physically strong and gifted technically with the ball. Both aren’t afraid to play physical. They represent a very
bright future for our defense, but they’re also ready to help out now.”
Coach Jimmy Hinchion, now in his 22 nd year with the girls, will be assisted by 3 long time Coaches. Jerry
Hills will coach the Junior Varsity and Shawn Hills and Ashley Gawrys will be the Varsity Assistants.
“Hillsy” has been coaching the JV’s for many years now and was the varsity coach of some extremely talented
Danvers teams back in the 1990s. Shawn Hills has coached with Hinchion all 22 years and also was an
assistant to his father back in the day. He is a Falcon Hall of Famer. Gawrys, formerly Ashley Sullivan was a 4
year starter who helped lead her team to a North Title her senior season. “I’m lucky to have such dedicated
Coaches to work with. They love the program and it’s a pleasure going through each season together.”
Even though the rules have changed, the traditions will remain the same. Danvers hopes to play at a high level
this year and have tons of fun in the process.