SG Soccer: Getting Better

9/26/2025

By Erik Van Dyke

After a great practice the day before where we worked on spacing, positioning and moving the ball, your Spartans put together a 2-0 masterclass this past Tuesday vs the defending ETIAC playoff champions from Alexander Galt.

In a game critical for positioning in the league standings, the Red & White did the little things, the boring things, that really win soccer matches. Depth. Width. Punt and goalkick coverage. Ballside positioning. Support. Throw-in coverage. There just weren’t too many cracks on this day for the Pipers to exploit. To wit:

Sara C, Haiden, Maxim and Sara M had their smartest, most efficient games yet at defensive mid, working ballside and supporting each other.
Zoe and Julia were like shutdown NFL cornerbacks; it is so tough to beat them wide.
Every single winger was attentive defensively AND at the same time fulfilled her offensive duties, which is crucial to our team shape.
Rafaelle was, once again, a relentless threat up front, striking fear in Galt’s defenders whenever she got going downhill.
Player Of The Game is shared between Hailey and Charlotte, who both had monster games. Hailey was a force in the midfield, always in the right place, dispossessing opponents defensively and distributing countless perfect passes on offence. And Charlotte looked like she’s played centre back her entire life, aggressively snuffing out and cutting out threats with zero hesitation, being a leader, taking charge.

Some memorable highlights for me and Coach Goodsell:

keeping Galt out of our defensive zone for the first 15 minutes(!) of the game
how intelligently and calmly the midfield played the ball back to our defense
Olivia’s and Etsuho’s best games of the season out on the wing
the pressure-releasing first-time clears by the defensive line
Lexi’s immaculate one-touch volley off a Raf corner kick, barely missing top shelf
and the Play Of The Game: Hailey somehow spinning and winning a 20-80 ball in the midfield, then sending a bee-yoo-tiful through ball to Raf, who calmly finished bottom right corner with the open foot (just like in practice!) to make the score 2-0

What a game! Next up: The Rematch! Next Monday vs Alexander Galt. Who will really, REALLY want revenge. There are no easy games in the ETIAC this season. And nothing is much harder than trying to beat the Pipers twice in a row.

But let’s enjoy this one a bit more. Ladies, you turned a corner this game. You trusted the team shape, the process, and your teammates. That was easily the smartest, most efficient, most disciplined, most COMPLETE game of the season. We were an organized unit out there. We were TOGETHER. If we can build on this, address our weaknesses – like capitalizing better on crosses and set pieces – we could make some real noise this season. The kind of noise that could possibly end with the ultimate prize – the ETIAC league banner. Can we keep getting better?

- Coaches Van Dyke & Goodsell

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