Shira Rand has had a busy summer thus far, her days occupied by work, club soccer obligations, skills development and individual training. The 17-year-old has starred for the Rye girls soccer team, earning all-state honors while helping them capture two state championships, but never would she rest on those laurels.
The Cornell commit split time last fall as a playmaking midfielder and defender, one who racked up 18 assists and often shifted to the backline during close games as coach Rich Savage trusted her to “shut down some of the best offensive players.”
But, Rand acknowledged, the graduation of eight seniors from that squad puts an onus on the returning players to improve, while also managing the unavoidable pressure of expectations.
“I’ve
been working a lot more this offseason on attacking,” Rand said of her focus leading up to the start of the high school fall tryouts on Aug. 24. “I want to be more dangerous in the (offensive) third, so it’s been a lot of practice taking people one-on-one and shooting.”
And who would doubt her ability to deliver well-placed kicks? After all, Rand is a taekwondo black belt.
Martial arts was one of her many — and we do mean many — athletic endeavors before zeroing in on soccer. That decision has paid off, of course, but Rand is a renaissance girl with a range of interests including literature, travel, computer science, sports, fine dining and history.
As we count down the final weeks of summer break, the rising senior chatted with us about a variety of topics — some real, some hypothetical and many of them frivolous.
As a black belt, are you the teammate nobody would mess with? “If we all fought each other, I don’t think I’d be the winner. I’d have a chance, but there are people who are physically stronger than me. Charlotte (Keenan) and I go to the same trainer and she lifts way more than me. Just from her strength, I know she’d be tough to beat.”
How has your summer job been going? “I worked for New York Soccer Club and I was a counselor for their summer camp. I was there with (teammate) Hannah Jachman. We were coaching kids born in 2019 and 2020. It makes you kind of feel old like, ‘Some of them weren’t even around when the pandemic started.’”
How did you get into soccer? “My parents put me into every sport when I was little. I was into soccer, softball, tennis, swimming, figure skating, skiing, taekwondo, lacrosse and basketball. I enjoyed everything, except lacrosse and basketball. Figure skating got to a point where we were doing all these complicated spins, and I got tired of it. As I got older, I figured out which ones I liked the best and started paring it down. When I got into club soccer, I fell in love with it and slowly dropped the others because of the time commitment. But I’m glad my parents allowed me to try everything.”
Any fun upcoming plans before summer ends? “I’m going to Utah with my friend, Mary. We’re gonna do a lot of hiking and go to a Zach Bryan concert. I’m also going to Nantucket with Julia (Carballo) and Charlotte. We’re gonna be at the beach a lot and probably rent some bikes and go riding. It’ll be relaxing.”
If you had a time machine and could visit any place in any era, what are some of the stops? “I’ve actually thought about this before, but I can never stick with one time period. I think being a teenager in the 1970s or the 80s would be fun. I’d also wanna go back to ancient Greece or Rome and see what it was like.”
What’s the coolest place you have visited? “I went to Hawaii – Maui and Oahu – and that whole trip was awesome. I also went to Israel and visited Jerusalem, and we saw all these historic sites that are thousands of years old. The Old City was amazing; it’s broken up into quarters: Muslim, Jewish, Christian and Armenian. It was cool to see buildings and landmarks preserved from so long ago, with people living there.”
You’re driving cross-country and you can have any four people in the car accompanying you, who are they? “Julia Carballo, because we said when we were little that we’d do a cross-country drive one day. Iron Man. He’d be good company and he would keep us safe. Snoopy the cartoon dog, because I had a fixation with him when I was a little kid. He can sit on Iron Man’s lap, so we’ve got two seats left. The last two would be Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. I’d want to see how they interact with each other. If there’s tension, I’ll drop Ronaldo off.”
Rye had 10 teams win championships, including four state titles, last school year. What was it like being part of that? “It was incredible. Just walking through the halls, it felt like I’d be congratulating different people all the time, or we’d be getting congratulated. Everyone was doing so well. Rye is such tight-knit community, everyone was happy for each other and it was a really fun, positive time.”
For the second time in your career, the Garnets are attempting to repeat a state title run. How do you approach it? “We’re still looking pretty strong. The seniors who graduated were really good, but we have a lot of starters returning and there’ll be some talented girls trying out in preseason. We have a lot of depth in the program, and that’s why Rye is able to consistently deliver results. Each year, there are players that improve and can rise to the occasion.”
What’s your advice to varsity newcomers this fall? “This would’ve been good advice for me as a freshman. When you first come up from JV, you’re thinking, ‘This is a really strong group. A bunch of them are playing in college.’ It’s easy to feel a little intimidated and put pressure on yourself. My first year, I was super anxious. But you have to come in level-headed. This is a competitive environment, but it’s also one where we support each other. Don’t be scared. You’re not gonna be yelled at or overly critiqued.”
When did you start skiing? “I was little, maybe 5 years old. I don’t do it competitively; I’ve never done ski racing. But my family is really into it and I love it. We like going to Sugarbush in Vermont.”
What are your hobbies outside of sports? “I love to read and go running, and I like watching movies and shows. I usually read over 20 books a year… My favorite shows are ‘Suits’ and ‘Prison Break.’ My favorite movie is probably ‘Little Miss Sunshine.’”
If you could have any superpower, what would it be? “Definitely teleportation. I’d go to Hawaii right now. I’d wanna go somewhere nice and far away.”
What’s your favorite food? “Ramen of any kind. My friends know this. Duke’s Ramen in Mamaroneck is great. At school sometimes we’d have a free period and lunch back-to-back, so we’d have time to go there.”
Who are your best friends on the team? “Julia, Charlotte, Hannah, Ryann O’Donnell, Blake Sasse and Harkin Brown. But I’m close with everyone.”
Who’s the funniest in the group? “Hannah. She’s a little goofy. Her whole personality is made for comedy. She’s funny without trying.”
If cost and resources weren’t a factor, what would your perfect day be like? “I’d start by waking up super early and get in a workout, then have fun with a group of friends. We start on the coast of Italy, go to the beach and have lunch there; pasta and pizza. Then we private jet to Spain and explore one of the cities and have a fancy dinner there. Then fly back to Rye and end the day hanging out at someone’s house.”
Stephen Haynes covers sports for The Journal News/lohud.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Shira Rand of Rye girls soccer on trying for another state title, life
