Girls’ Soccer Simply Dominates Kimball Union Academy
“We just wanted it. We were ready to win.”
Upper Michaela Streep went into Wednesday’s game against Kimball Union Academy with this mentality. It was clear from the first few touches on the pitch that the entire girls’ varsity soccer team thought the same way.
A positive attitude worked wonders when combined with the skill of our girls, leading them to a ruthless 4-2 routing of KUA.
Upper Hailey Hudson described the team’s morale as incredibly motivated. “We were determined to win this game from the moment we stepped on the field to warm up. We were focused and played hard from the start, and this attitude directly affected our style of play,” Hudson said.
"We were determined to win this game from the moment we stepped on the field to warm up. We were focused and played hard from the start, and this attitude directly affected our style of play."
This new mental state led to a huge improvement in gameplay from previous fixtures. The players were in sync and played like a Big Red team should. “We were much better with possession and connecting passes and more cohesive as a team than previous games, which allowed us to possess the ball down the field and then get shots on goal,” Hudson said.
This new sense of togetherness and team chemistry sparked increasingly aggressive play from our girls. KUA held a high defensive line, vainly trying to force our attacking line offsides. To be fair, the ploy worked once or twice. However, Big Red made an intelligent analysis of the acceleration difference between KUA’s defense and our strikers. Within minutes of the first offsides call, through balls and chipped passes soared past the sluggish defense of the opposition. A shocking number of one-on-one situations occurred, involving the keeper and a valiant Big Red player searching for glory.
Naturally, more attempts and shots on target led to a bounty of goals. The real test on Wednesday was not of our offensive might, but our defensive determination.
Ten minutes into the second half, KUA had just brought the score to 3-2. In a final desperate search for a comeback, KUA threw everything they had at our backline. Big Red shut them down without mercy. Our grit and mental strength held them back and spurred forth a counter-attack which led to the fourth and final goal of the match, the latch on the coffin.
Wednesday was a bright day for lower Hannah Gustafson, her second game back after injury. Gustafson took full advantage of her opportunities, netting two.
“Hannah Gustafson had a great game, especially it being her second game back. She scored two out of our four goals and literally dangled each of their defensive players in order to get a one-on-one with the KUA goalkeeper,” Hudson said.
The other scorers were constant offensive threat Jacie Lemos and new lower Honor Clements.
Looking to the future, the girls’ varsity soccer team needs to maintain their mental strength and good team cohesion. With a positive outlook and strong passing game, Big Red hopes to defeat Tabor away this Saturday.