Varsity Girls Soccer defeated Milpitas High School 2-1 on Wednesday, Jan. 21. The Matadors spent the majority of the game down one goal against MHS before turning the tide and scoring their first two goals in the final 15 minutes to secure a win. Senior and striker Sophia Yamada mentions that the game held high stakes for both teams, as MVHS entered the match with an undefeated record this season, while MHS had only suffered one previous defeat.
“We weren’t prepared for their long balls,” Yamada said. “They were playing the ball from their side all the way to the other side. For example, the ball went over our center backs, and they were able to get on the end of it and just shoot it. Afterwards, we were able to hold them off 0-0 for the rest of the first half.”
Yamada attributes the shift in momentum to an encouraging halftime pep talk from their coach, where the players recognized that, despite their losing score, their performance was quite strong because they maintained possession of the ball for most of the first half. During halftime, the team decided it would concentrate on staying calm and connecting passes.
Freshman and wing-back Grace Schweigert emphasizes the team’s focus on utilizing its own strengths against MHS. MVHS also adjusted its strategy and played wide to avoid MHS’ goalkeeper due to her strong punts, which often sent the ball back to MVHS’ defensive half.
“We picked out our opponent’s weakness,” Schweigert said. “We noticed that on their sides, we could dust them. We were a lot faster, so we took advantage of that. It was just pure grit, honestly.”
The Matadors’ strategy in the second half paid off when Schweigert assisted one of her teammates, sophomore and center forward Marissa Chang, in scoring MVHS’ first goal of the game. Carrying on their momentum, Schweigert scored the game-winning goal in the final 10 minutes.
“Scoring that first goal really brought us all back,” Schweigert said. “When you go down one, everyone’s angry at each other, everyone’s frustrated at themselves. But when we got that first goal in, we realized that we can do this, and it’s not over.”
