On paper, things shouldn’t have gone very well for the Wright City girls soccer team in its season opener on Friday at home against St. Charles West.
And while the 3-0 defeat is hardly the …
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On paper, things shouldn’t have gone very well for the Wright City girls soccer team in its season opener on Friday at home against St. Charles West.
And while the 3-0 defeat is hardly the finish of dreams, the Wildcats more than held their own against a team that finished four games over .500 last season.
With several players gone due to other school obligations, a makeshift line-up had its chances to change the game’s outcome.
Junior forward Ada Ferrell banged a shot off the post and had a couple of near misses on connections that could have led to chances on the Warriors’ goal.
“We expected this team to be good and we were missing a lot of our key players for STUCO (Student Council) state. The result was disappointing, but overall, we played great. We had a different goalie and she did awesome under the pressure. She’s a freshman, and I’m proud of all of our freshmen who played because they played up to the varsity level.”
Late in the first half, Ferrell broke in on the St. Charles West goal and beat the opposing goalkeeper, but the shot ricocheted off the right post and away from the goal.
The early success has just left the junior wanting more.
“I’ve just got to remember that I’m not going to make every shot,” Ferrell said. “After that (first miss) I can’t get into my head. I just have to keep taking my shots.”
After Ferrell, Wright City’s other close call on offense came late in the game when Haley Elsenrath sent a free kick deep in West territory just over the crossbar.
While West led 2-0 at the half on an early goal and a successful penalty, Wright City kept up its attack while freshman Sam Sperla shone in goal behind a gritty defensive effort.
Wildcats Coach Victoria Harris said that Sperla’s play between the jamboree and the season opener has been a definite bright spot.
“She really stepped up and I thought she played real well back there for us, which was exciting,” Harris said. “I’m very excited to see the growth we can have throughout the season from this.”
Next week, the team will have a pair of games as the Wildcats visit Hazelwood East on Monday and Veritas Christian on Wednesday.
