This summer, Beth Reefer and her siblings were just kickin' it.

The Slippery Rock High senior spent the summer months traveling and playing soccer - a lot of soccer.

But the biggest competition might have come against older brother Jason and older sister Karen in her own backyard.

"We played all the time," Reefer said. "My brother and I would go in the backyard and play one-on-one. He helped me, showed me a few things to make me better."

Both Karen and Jason were standout players at Slippery Rock High School. Karen played at Grove City College and is now a teacher in the Grove City school system and Jason is finishing his pre-law degree at the University of Pennsylvania.

Beth Reefer now is looking for some big things this season after turning in her third-straight team MVP performance in 2003 for the Rockets, when she scored 26 goals. She scored 18 goals as a sophomore and 10 as a freshman.

Is another eight-goal jump in her future?

"Let's hope so," Reefer said. "Let's shoot for 35."

But Reefer isn't all about scoring goals. Like any soccer player, assists are good, too.

And she has a strong supporting cast around her, starting with sophomore Jence Rhoads, who added 14 goals a season ago.

"Jence Rhoads really helped her," said Slippery Rock coach Blair Gantz. "When you have more than one player who can be a threat, that helps the whole team."

Reefer's only target this season is to lead the team in scoring - whether that comes from goals or assists.

Slippery Rock figures to be a force again in District 10 after going 17-5 a season ago.

But the schedule doesn't benefit the Rockets or Reefer. The team opens with six straight matches on the road. Its first home appearance won't come until Sept. 20.

"The bus rides are definitely a bonding experience," Reefer said. "I don't think the distance will affect us. We're still playing on the same field."

Reefer, though, has been playing on a different field compared to most players since she entered high school.

As a freshman, she was already a vocal leader. Gantz even toyed with making her a captain then.

"She's been a captain for the last two years, and, in all fairness, she could have been one as a freshman," Gantz said. "She's not only a leader that way, but how she plays on the field."

Reefer is a very aggressive player, using her speed and quick feet to create opportunities for herself or her teammates.

That comes from playing soccer almost non-stop since she was 3.

"I would watch my brother and sister play soccer," Reefer said. "And I would just join in."

Reefer also plays for Northern Steel and played for Slippery Rock during an abbreviated season in the spring.

"She plays a lot of soccer outside of high school," Gantz said. "She's a very skilled player. She's all over the field. She has it all."

Reefer plans to play soccer in college as she prepares for a career in the medical field.

She is looking at schools such as Johns Hopkins University, Messiah College and Washington & Jefferson College.

"One of my major criteria is playing soccer in college," Reefer said.

Karen Reefer once said when it was all said and done, Beth would be the best soccer player in the family.

Beth Reefer chuckles at the thought.

"I have a lot to live up to," she said. "But I'm trying."