Crown Point’s Rivich in the middle of things

Updated: September 7, 2011 8:57PM

Sarah Rivich is used to change on the soccer field. The Crown Point junior has been a part of it for three years now.

As a freshman, the talented Rivich started at sweeper for the Bulldogs, a critical position as the last line of defense before the goalkeeper. Last season, Crown Point needed scoring help, so coach Chris Mikrut moved Rivich to forward, the first line of offense.

This year, Rivich finds herself somewhere in the middle — defensive center midfield to be exact.

“I’ll play wherever they need me,” Rivich said.

The move has multiple purposes. Rivich was hounded by defenders last year after moving to forward. She still scored 16 goals to go with eight assists.

But now, as a midfielder, she can see the entire field and react without having multiple defenders draped over her. And if she needs to move up and help the offense, she can. If she needs to stay back and play a more defensive position, she can.

“It allows her to kind of attack almost unmarked,” Mikrut said. “Whenever anyone comes in, they’re looking for Sarah. Where she’s playing now, though, it’s hard to mark her.”

The shift was made possible because of the amount of depth the Bulldogs boast this season. Abi Small and Amy Adams have taken on big scoring roles this season.

But because of her skill and speed, Rivich still is a key cog offensively for Crown Point. She has five goals and nine assists from her midfield position. And on Tuesday, she scored what proved to be the game-winning goal early in the second half in a key Duneland Conference win over Chesterton.

“I don’t care who scores,” Rivich said. “As long as we keep scoring goals as a team and keep having as many opportunities as possible, that’s all that matters.”

For Mikrut, it has allowed him to put his most versatile and skilled player in a position to help the team at any moment.

“I’ve been coaching varsity boys and girls soccer since 1994, and I don’t know that I’ve ever had a player like Sarah,” Mikrut said. “A lot of times, a player might run fast but can’t dribble, or run fast but can’t shoot. Sarah can do it all. She can take it to another level. She has that never-die mentality, but she’s super skilled. It’s almost like she’s the complete package in that sense.”

And in a soccer sense, coaches typically want their most trusted player at the center midfield position.

“She wins every ball in the air, every goal kick, every punt,” Mikrut said. “Every ball in the box when we’re serving corner kicks, she’s on that play. It’s not about the glory of the goal with her, it’s about playing the game.”

Rivich is ultracompetitive in the game of soccer, but she turns her focus to basketball in the winter, where she is a point guard for the Bulldogs. She’s one of those rare high-level soccer athletes who takes the winter off to focus on another sport, rather than play soccer year round.

“Yeah, there are some that just end up quitting and focus on one sport,” Rivich said. “But I love playing basketball. I don’t want to give that up.”

And Mikrut is fine with that. In fact, he encourages it.

“She’s a great point guard, and it’s not easy to be able to switch from one sport to another like that,” Mikrut said. “I love that she plays multiple sports.”

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