January 29, 2025

Newton’s Peterson selects Central College soccer

Cardinal standout takes talents to Dutch pitch

Morgan Peterson plays on a club soccer team in Pella that is coached by Newton boys soccer coach Zach Jensen, who also coaches at Central College.

It’s safe to say Peterson has been around and near the Central College women’s program for a while now. So it makes sense that she would take her talents to Pella and play her collegiate matches for the Dutch.

“I really liked the small setting and that it’s closer to home if I need to come back,” Peterson said, who had a signing ceremony at the school a few days before the holiday break. “Everyone was so nice when I came to visit and I like the set up of the campus a lot, too. The coaches are really awesome.”

Peterson said she looked at Northwestern in Orange City, too, but Central College was the easy winner for her services.

“I played on a club team in Pella so I was in town a lot,” Peterson said. “(Coach Jensen) got me in contact with the coaches there.”

Newton girls soccer coach Abby Lamont is not sure where Central College women’s soccer coach Mike Kobylinski will use Peterson on the pitch yet, but her versatility should be able to help the Dutch program right away.

“We have had her up front, we have put her in the midfield and we’ve had her on the back line,” Lamont said. “Coach Koby is great and he will do great things with her, put her in different positions and he will push her to show her ability. He will bring out the best in her and make her a better player all around. His staff is really good, too.”

Peterson will play for a head coach at Central who has guided the women’s soccer program to at least 10 wins seven times since 2011. The Dutch were 14-2-3 in 2017, 15-4-1 in 2016 and 11-4-4 in 2014.

Kobylinski is the all-time wins leader at Central with a record of 111-64-19.

“I’m not exactly sure where they’ll play her at yet,” Lamont said. “Coach Jensen coaches her in the fall. He put her up front and she’s really started to score well up there. Him allowing her to play different spots has helped her.

“It gives her options and it will help her from a leadership standpoint helping teammates know where to go.”

Peterson was limited to nine matches due to injury as a freshman at Newton. But she started all nine matches and finished with one goal, one assist and three points. There was no season two years ago.

As a junior, Peterson ranked third on the Cardinals with seven assists and 11 points and also tied for fourth with two goals. She made 15 starts in 17 matches.

“(Central) has a lot of depth,” Peterson said. “They try to use a lot of players in each match. The coaches are really focused on each position having multiple options. I play outside midfielder for my high school team but recently moved to forward on my club team so I think I could play either spot in college.”

Peterson said a focus for her this offseason was running a lot and staying in better shape.

“That’s going to be something that will get more serious in college,” she said. “I also have been going to Futsal two times a week to work on my footwork. I want to get more technical.”

Lamont said Futsal is intense training that is all about ball control. And working on that part of her game will help her both for her senior year at Newton and in college at Central.

“She will have to learn the different formations at Central, but she will be ready playing wise,” Lamont said. “It’s a different level, but she’ll be ready.”