SG Soccer White Semi-Final: That's Soccer

 

But we didn’t lose 1-0 for either of those reasons. We didn’t lose because of the ref, either. Or because of bad luck.

We lost because, well, that’s soccer.

With two evenly matched teams working as hard as they can, it always comes down to a couple plays here and there. Ten minutes in, Bernadette hammers a cruise missile from 30 yards out that hits the crossbar so hard you could hear it at Marché Tradition. If that goes in, who knows? In the 44^th(!) minute of the first half, a bad bounce in the box results in a penalty shot for Galt, which they convert for the only goal of the game. If the ref checks his watch 30 seconds earlier, who knows?

That’s soccer.

But I tell ya, I was proud of us on this day. We could have been complacent, but we matched Galt’s intensity all game long. We could have slumped our shoulders with two starters out, but instead people stepped up. We could have run out of gas in that second half, but we dug deep those last 20 minutes and threw the kitchen sink at the Pipers, doing everything we could think of (Camryn striker, Sara wing, Avah midfield) to tie the game.

Ultimately, we couldn’t quite win enough balls in the midfield to give ourselves a legit chance to notch the equalizer. The final whistle blew, the Pipers celebrated, the teams shook hands, and that was it. No more games. Nothing left to prepare for.

But what a ride it’s been this season. An unqualified success. I’ll save most of the details for Athletic Assembly, but I can’t sign off without reliving my #1 memory from this season: celebrating on Coulter Field under the Friday Nite Lights after that epic banner-winning victory. Teammates, joy, and lifelong memories.

Now, that’s soccer. J

- Coaches VD & K