It’s a new season, but the Pines Charter girls soccer varsity team still has the same goal this year: to win districts. As they enter the 2021-2022 season they continue to be one of the favorites to win this title. Coming up short last year on lifting up the district title with a loss to their rivals, Archbishop McCarthy, the lady jags hope to bring that beloved trophy back home.

   Coming into the new season, the team has confidence with the quality of the players that they have, despite losing some influential seniors from last year. Leyla Molina, Eliana Salama, and  Sabrina Araujo-Elorza all had remarkable seasons last year and hope to bring that same performance into the new season. Their aim is to lead the team as far into the playoffs as possible, coming from Leyla Molina who stated: “ We hope to beat Archbishop McCarthy High School this year to finally get our district championship trophy. We also aspire to go to states this year because I believe this year is our year”.

   These seniors are the ones to watch as they are arguably the most principal players on the field. The team’s confidence has seen an improvement this season and when captain, Sabrina Araujo-Elorza, was asked about it, she asserted: “The team is fairly optimistic going into the new season. We know it’s going to be difficult, but we are prepared to put in the work”    

   The team’s journey for playoffs has already begun as their regular season has already commenced. Their first game of the season was against Coral Glades High School. They had a very dominant victory with a score of 6-0. The team hopes to bring that momentum into their next game on Tuesday against North Broward Prep. 

   As they move deeper into the season, the team will face many competitive opponents that will test the team’s true colors. Natali Brito, a junior who’s been on the team all 3 years, expresses her thoughts on how the team will do against teams such as Cypress Bay or American Heritage: “ I feel like our team will do well against stronger teams because we play well together as a group. We have good chemistry as a team, and I believe that’s one of our strengths against competitive teams like these. We know these teams will be very tough competition but we’re going to be ready”. 

   Nonetheless, this team has the potential to go very far into the playoffs and have the opportunity to finally lift up the district title. Only time will tell to see if lady jags can accomplish this goal.