Call it a cult, call it a clique, or whatever you will, the Girls Varsity Soccer team was a force to be reckoned with this fall. Let’s take a gander through the girls’ 2014 soccer performance, a season rife with silly group texts, pizza lunches, and victories.

The girls soccer team went out with a bang during the playoffs on Thursday October 23. That afternoon, the team piled onto the bright yellow school bus, blasting pump-up music and strategizing for their playoff game. After a hard-fought match, they lost to Portledge. Esme Chant, one of the Senior Captains for the team got teary-eyed from nostalgia discussing the game, “it was sad going into our playoff game at Portledge knowing it could be the seniors last game on the team, but we all played really well and it made me proud to be part of such a great institution.” Although the day marked the end of their season, the game was fought hard and can attest to the fact that the BC Varsity Girls Soccer Team crushed it this season.

This season the team, under their exceptional Senior Captains: Esme Chant, Sabrina Quintanilla, and Julia Pike, competed in two challenging leagues, and earned an impressive 6-8-2 record. The girls competed their hardest against tough teams like Chapin and Spence in the ACIS, and earned the #4 spot in the PSAA league, which took them to the playoffs. The team even beat Waldorf 4-1 in an exciting game that guaranteed their playoff spot. This season’s girls have really begun to make a name for themselves on the field.

But how did the team get this far? An outstanding team is a delicate swirl of skill and team unity, sprinkled with leadership and dedication. The girls had the skill. They had the team unity.  And they definitely sparkled with leadership and hard work. Two weeks before the rest of the BC community sharpened their pencils, getting ready to go back to school, the Girls Varsity Soccer team sharpened their soccer skills, strapping on their cleats and shin-guards. The girls had a grueling week at a soccer camp at the Darrow School in Connecticut and another at the Parade Grounds in Brooklyn. Here they got past the awkward “nice-to-meet-you” walls and started to really kick some butt.

Julia Pike, a captain, enthuses, “The prospects for the team coming into this year were super exciting, because although we graduated two awesome seniors (Claudia Freeman and Lily Rose Weiss, who is now a starter at Grinnell!) the rest of the team who was here last year had a ton of experience from last year and was ready for this year.” Furthermore, the team acquired some talented Fresh-meat when a rallying total of seven freshmen joined the squad!

During the school day, you could often find the soccer girls munching together in the back of the cafeteria, stacks of Roma’s own pizza boxes set in the middle of the table. They were as active with their thumbs as they were on the field with their ‘live’ group chat that involved wild emojis and hilarious jokes. Scattered throughout the barren locker walls you could find gems of soccer secret Santa flowers and glittery fun pictures intended to “psych” up the other teammates. Lastly, all the girls supported each other on and off the field with pats on the back and encouragements from the sidelines. The team’s unity shouldn’t be taken for granted. With great seniors by their side, the team thrived and had a ball–a super-talented soccer ball–that is.

These girls have seen what it’s like to play confidently and powerfully, forging a path for BC victory. The team will continue to take what they’ve learned to next year’s season! It oughta be great! Good luck next year to seniors Julia Pike, Esme Chant, and Sabrina Quintanilla, Morgan Judge-Tyson, Maddy King, and Olivia Guarna—BC 2014 Soccer wouldn’t have been the same without you!