With well executed goals and strong defensive plays, WA Girls’ Soccer defeated the Lowell Raiders in their second 8-0 victory of the season on Thursday, Sept. 5, raising their season record to a promising 2-0.
WA maintained control throughout the game, showing off both strategic gameplay and tireless energy on their path to victory. Although the girls were confident going into the game, especially after coming from another 8-0 victory last week against Tewksbury, this did not stop them from playing just as hard. Key offensive plays from juniors Sofie Cotter and senior Tina Lin along with strong defense from senior Ali Pantoja and sophomore Alexa Coward made for a spirited 80 minutes.
Early on, the team executed on several opportunities to score, with junior Hope MacDonald scoring the first goal of the game after just two minutes on the field. The team quickly found their momentum and less than a minute later, junior Sofie Cotter doubled their lead with another goal.
The remainder of the half brought forth aggressive touches and fluid passes built on strong teamwork, with WA accumulating 6 more goals in the span of 15 minutes. Goals were scored by junior Brooke Nielsen, Cotter, senior captain Martha Khusid, junior Eleni Stowell, and senior captain Erin Keefe, and were supported by assists from sophomore Lyla Griffin, MacDonald, and senior captain Ella DiRuggiero.
“Everybody got in today with playing time and worked hard,” Khusid said. “Ultimately it was a team effort, and even when we had a solid lead, everybody kept hustling and playing hard which definitely helped us”
As the second half opened, the opposing keeper was able to execute a number of impressive saves in response to attempts, but the Raiders were simply no match for WA. Despite not scoring another goal during this half, WA dominated the game with swift passes and strong defense, maintaining possession of the ball.
Brief interruptions arose following two collisions with Lowell players, resulting in both being escorted off the field with injuries. The second half was also marked by an increase in offside calls for WA.
“We were playing really good two-touch, and we were just playing well as a team and transitioning well,” Keefe said. [Lowell] kept pulling their line up high so we got some offside calls, but other than that, not really [any challenges].”
The team now also has four pairs of siblings on the varsity team, a new occurrence that has contributed to the team chemistry, both on and off the field.
Evident from the cheers heard from enthusiastic parents in the stands, the game ended in high spirits with the team looking forward to the season. Their next game will be on Saturday, Sept. 14 at 11:00 a.m against Billerica Memorial.
“I think we have to get ready for more competitive games because so far they haven’t been as challenging, ” Khusid said. “Just connecting as a team and competing at a high level against the DCL teams going forward is our goal.”
