“Let’s go Lady Jags” echoed across the field on Wednesday, January 21. The Lady Jags varsity soccer team kicked off its post-season run in the district semifinals against Hollywood Hills High School. During the regular season, they held a record of 10-2-2. Now, as they begin the postseason, their record is back to 0-0.
The game against Hollywood Hills High School was a blowout. It ended with a final score of 8-0. Junior Madison Connacher led the Lady Jags in this game with four goals. Seniors Sierra St. Surin and Amanda Fernandez, junior Grace Ahern, and 7th grader Oreofe Soyode each scored one goal.
The victory got them off to a high note in their postseason run, as they became 1-0 in the district tournament. Now, they have to face off against their cross-town rivals: Archbishop McCarthy High School Mavericks, in the district finals. As the Lady Jags are defending district champions, they are not hungry for the victory; they are starving for it.
(Donated by: Madison Casanova)
Thursday, January 22, arrives, and it is game day. The field is lined, the Mavericks arrive, the sun is setting, and warmups begin. The tension between the teams could be felt from the stands.
Prior to the game, junior Grace Ahern comments, “I am feeling a little nervous since McCarthy is our rival team and it is the first time I am playing them on our home field.”
The buzzer goes off, and the starters run onto the field. The ball is being passed around, and the first quarter did not have much action. Then, in the second quarter, the Mavericks scored the first goal of the game, making the score 0-1. The Mavericks now held the lead, and the Lady Jags were down, yet they refused to give up.
In the last minutes of the second quarter, suddenly the Lady Jags gained possession of the ball, and they began running down the field and scored a goal. Ahearn assisted Soyode to score a goal that would tie the game 1-1.
The third and fourth quarters were the same as the first quarter and did not have any action. The game was tied, and they went into penalty kicks. Senior Madison Casanova started off the penalty kicks as she scored one. Then the Mavericks scored one also.
This was followed by junior Connacher and St. Surin both scoring while the Mavericks were right behind them, tying them as they also scored. Then, Amariah Ayum was the fourth to make a penalty kick, and the Mavericks missed right after her, so the Jaguars were now up 4-3.
Prior to Catalina Castro, the other team scored one, and the score was now 4-4. The district title relied on this kick. The crowd went silent, and the tension could be felt from the stands. The boys’ team had just arrived and stood beside the field watching. Castro stretched out her legs and kicked the ball. Everyone closed their eyes. The ball went in the net, and the Jaguars were district champions.
The boys team ran out onto the field and cheered with the girls team, and they became back-to-back district champions, winning the game in penalties 5-4.
A first-year Lady Jag, freshman Rileigh Sabel adds, “It felt amazing to prove that all our dedication was worth it. Being with all of my girls on the team made it ten times better.”
