NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) — Doug Freese has Newman on the cusp of doing something the girls soccer team has not done since 2018: winning consecutive state championships. The Greenie girls are enjoying immediate success under Freese, winning the 2023 Division IV Title, in his first season, but the quick rise to dominance is no surprise to the now second-year head coach.
“Every team I’ve ever coached has had success. I expected them to be successful. It’s not just my expectation as a coach coming into any team that I have the good fortune of handle, I’ve seen the talent that this group had for several years, before I ever got the opportunity to coach them, so it’s exactly what I expected to see,” Freese said.
And what the Greenies are showing is dominance. Just like the team’s 2023 title run, Newman has only allowed one goal through their first three playoff games. However even with success, Coach Freese is not tolerating mistakes.
“I actually am disappointed with the goal we gave up and the way we gave it up: their first shot of the game, and it was off of a set piece. We didn’t defend it very well. Small margins matter, when you get to this stage of the season, and you hope to go through the playoffs without giving up anything. You do that you win,” the second-year coach added.
Freese may have a low tolerance for error, but the coach’s formula is clearly working. The main thing though Freese emphasizes is how much the players have led to the early success, thanks to their emotional and mental intelligence.
“Because they’re serious players, because they’re intelligent young women and because they work hard, I don’t have to ride them. We talk about, very frankly, about the things we do poorly. I spend 90% of my time telling them how wonderful I think they are. Makes it a little easier under those circumstances to take criticism when criticism is warranted,” Freese finished.
Doug Freese of Isidore Newman. This week’s coach of the week presented by Delgado Community College, step closer to unstoppable.
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