Sonja Rowell and Alex George built the West Lauderdale girls soccer program into a state powerhouse, so it was only fitting the school’s new soccer field would be named in their honor.

Rowell started the girls soccer program at West Lauderdale in 2002, and she coached at the school for 20 seasons. George retired from the head coaching position after this past season, and he and Rowell oversaw a run that had the Lady Knights make it to the MHSAA Class 4A state title game for six straight seasons, winning four state championships in that span.

During their tenure, the pair began putting plans together for a new soccer field by West Lauderdale Elementary, on which work began in 2018. The team practices on the field next to the elementary school, and both the girls and boys soccer teams hope to eventually be able to play home games there within the next several years.

With George retiring as head coach of the Lady Knights and Rowell retiring as assistant coach, West Lauderdale recently honored the two of them by naming the new field George-Rowell Field. It caught them both by surprise, but both said they were humbled by the gesture.

“They had a retirement ceremony a few weeks ago and unveiled the sign with our names on it, and it blew me away,” George said. “I didn’t see it coming, and I was very honored to say the least.”

Rowell said she was also surprised when the sign was presented to her and George, but she’s grateful to have her name attached to the new field after 20 years coaching the Lady Knights.

“It was an awesome experience and such a fun ride being there for that long,” Rowell said. “The really special thing about the sign is my grandchildren go to the elementary school, so they’ll get to see the sign on the way to the school. That’s really cool.”

West Lauderdale Principal Shane Rodgers said the work both George and Rowell put into the girls soccer program made it a no-brainer to name the field after them.

“Both really laid a foundation with both our boys and girls soccer teams — Coach George coached the boys here in the early 2000s,” Rodgers said. “Both of them did a fantastic job, and they pushed more than anyone to get that field over there. The majority of the progress (on the new field) can be attributed to them.”

The new field currently has fencing, team benches and irrigation, and Rodgers said the next step is to add facilities like bathrooms and concessions, as well as lighting and bleachers for fans.