After being plagued by injuries last season, the varsity girls soccer team prevails with yet another district win in the 2017-2018 soccer season. As the team celebrates mercy ruling Hillel, they advance into regionals with high hopes. Senior and captain Ava Hansen shares, “An obvious goal would be to win regionals because we haven’t won since I was in ninth grade, three years ago.” With a total of fifteen wins, there’s no doubt the team is coming close to their goals.

Last year, the season came to an abrupt end when the girls lost to Palmer Trinity during the region-final game, a team they had mercy ruled during the regular season. This loss caused the team to be even more motivated and competitive this year.

The team’s head coach, Coach Weiss, states that as the team advances into the playoffs, they will be playing with three defenders in the back with a player in front of them, acting as a stopper. This formation will allow the team to have a very strong defense. This year, the team has been implementing more tactical trainings into their practices, such as possession of the ball and working together on the field as a unit. They have also been implementing standard technical trainings into their practices, such as players working on their first touch. According to Coach Weiss, a key factor in pushing the team towards the playoffs is keeping her expectations high, “We have a lot of new freshman, and keeping the same mentality has made their game better. I expect a lot from the girls and having my expectations at a certain level, they are achieving it.” Keeping the team healthy has also been a priority. By integrating ice baths and strength training into their practices, the team has been able to prevent a lot of last year’s injuries.

As the season goes on, the players are focusing on what they need to improve on to win regionals. According to goalie Sofia Benenson, the main improvements the team can make is remembering to play with confidence and ease, along with having more faith in themselves as players. Communication and working together as a unit is extremely important at this point in the season. “I think as one of the captains, I just need to make sure that everyone on the team is dedicated and has that hunger to go to states,” reflects Ava Hansen. The team not only hopes to make it to states, but they want to win states. According to Coach Weiss, if the players give it their all on the field and continue working on their communication, this goal will be achievable. “I am very confident that we will get back to states, and I don’t want to make it back to states, I want to win states,” says Coach Weiss. Three seniors on the team went to states three years ago, during their freshman year, making it even more exciting for them to possibly be able to end their high school careers as champions.

Make sure to come support the girls varsity soccer team in their first regional game on Tuesday and as they continue with their journey to states!