by Kylie Gifford
The soccer season is winding to a close for the VC varsity girls after what can only be considered an extremely successful season.
Over the past several games, the girls have faced countless challenges against the best of the best in the West Catholic league, and they have proven both their abilities and their drive in overcoming these challenges.
The girls began league with two preseason wins and a tie under their belts. After a close 2-3 loss to the Mitty Monarchs, they stepped up their game and earned a huge 4-0 win over Sacred Heart Cathedral just one day later. It seemed that this game would more or less set the tone for the rest of the season.
On their home field, the Warriors faced the Presentation Panthers on December 12 for the first time in the season. Junior Morgan Celaya put the Warriors on the board first with a goal assisted by a throw-in from junior Stephanie Bales, but the girls were unable to keep the lead over their opponent. Though they out-shot the Panthers 25 attempts on goal to 9, the Warriors found it difficult to finish, resulting in a close 1-2 loss.
The next game would bring a much more gratifying ending for the girls. After a neck-and-neck battle with Notre Dame Belmont, the Warriors came out on top with a 1-0 victory. VC’s goal was scored by Emily vonRaesfeld late in the first half; a phenomenal corner kick by Anna Calderon found vonRaesfeld in a perfect position just outside of the opponent’s box. This win was exactly what the Warriors needed to regain their confidence in order to take on their next few opponents.
Over the next few games, the Warriors found no difficulty in securing several more victories. The girls defeated Santa Teresa, Sacred Heart Prep, and Saint Ignatius; VC goalkeepers Chanae Jones and Kendra Gillio both played major roles in these successes, allowing not one goal to be scored against the Warriors in all three games. Though they found themselves unable to overcome the Saint Francis Lancers, losing the close game 0-2, and hard-pressed to redeem themselves against the Monarchs, falling short again by just one goal, the girls continued to focus their attention on working together in order to achieve the success they knew they were capable of.
The Warriors got their chance to redeem themselves against Presentation just after a 3-1 victory over Sacred Heart Cathedral. They took the field ready to meet any challenge they Panthers had to offer, and as it turned out, their efforts paid off. After out-shooting their opponent 21-5 and dominating in every aspect, the final score was a well-earned testament to the determination and hard work that the girls put into every minute of the game. An incredible save in the first few minutes of the game fired up the defense early on, and the Panthers were able to get off few shots. Almost nine minutes in, Bales earned the lead for the Warriors, kicking in the rebound off of Celaya’s shot. Later in the second half, vonRaesfeld directed a shot into the far upper corner of the Panthers’ goal, also assisted by Celaya. This secured the lead for the Warriors, and the game concluded with a huge 2-0 VC victory.
After a 1-1 tie with Notre Dame and a 3-1 victory over Sacred Heart Prep, the Lady Warriors faced Saint Francis again. This game was important to the team for several reasons; they would settle for nothing less than a win on their Senior Night. Under VC’s own stadium lights on a clear Thursday evening, the ladies took the field prepared for anything the Lancers would bring. They controlled the ball from the outset, but despite dominating, halftime came with the score still tied 0-0.
Warrior domination continued in the second half, but the game remained scoreless until Calderon placed a perfect ball to Celaya with only three minutes left. Celaya broke past a Lancer defender and found herself one-on-one with the Saint Francis goalkeeper; a shot into the side net would put the Warriors up 1-0. The Lancers were unable to answer, and when the game ended, the girls ran off the field ecstatic about their victory.
The Warriors had one more game to solidify their record before heading into WCAL playoffs. Their 1-1 tie against Saint Ignatius was all they needed to wrap up their league season with a strong record of 10-4-2, and as they head into playoffs, their successes are expected to continue.
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