It was always a given that Lexie Henrie was going to be a stalwart on Timpanogos' back line this year. She was too good on defense to move elsewhere.

But that didn't mean she would never get her shots on goal.

"I always wanted to score goals," Henrie says. "I knew I would have to lead that way."

She led the Timberwolves right back to the championship game this year after last season's loss to Bonneville in the final. And with a strong-footed boot in the opening minutes of the game against Skyline, she led the team straight to its second title in three years.

It's true that Henrie was a defender, but not in a strict sense. Her abilities have always reached beyond any one position on the field, coach Natalyn Lewis says.

"She's always had a strong natural ability to play the game, and the last couple years, she's been able to grab ahold of some of those unique talents," she says. "She can take the ball to her feet and get past a few girls. We couldn't move her because she was too valuable, but she did love to move forward."

Henrie tied with forward Jordyn Chung-Hoon for overall scoring lead on the team with 11 goals on the season. It wasn't a ton of scores, but they tended to go in at key moments — none bigger than the championship shot that sealed a title for Timpanogos.

It wasn't even necessarily that Henrie had top-notch finishing prowess. Her goals tended to come on long shots, usually from 20 yards or more out. She has a cannon for a leg, and her shots on set pieces or even open play had a knack for finding their way to the net.

Henrie was dogged by injuries during the season, and even sat out a week to deal with lingering leg and foot issues. But she quickly returned to the pitch — not because she was healed but because she knew her team couldn't afford to be without her.

"Our joke was that she was held together with tape, because whenever she came off the field, we had to tape her up some more," Lewis says. "She just had this refusal to stop, an unwillingness to sit out when we were playing big games."

Her leadership, along with that of fellow captain Jamie Harward, was invaluable on a team made up mostly of underclassmen. Henrie heads to Utah State next year, but her impression on the program could last long after she's gone.

"I think last year, maybe some of those girls were nervous or a little scared," Henrie says. "This year, that changed. We learned how to stay mentally tough, and we acted like we had been there before. I think it showed in that last game."

kgoon@sltrib.comTwitter: @kylegoon