On Friday, March 1, the varsity girls soccer team played against Stony Point and brought home a big 4-1 district win. On top of the win, it was also senior night which made the whole experience extra sweet for the Lady Warriors.
As soon as the referee blew the whistle to start off the game, the Lady Warriors and Tigers brought intensity and physicality to the game.
A long way into the half, Stony Point was applying pressure, trying to push into Westwood’s defensive line. Through repeated dangerous crosses into the box, the Tigers were testing the waters of a goal. However, slowly, the Warriors began to gather momentum. With eight minutes left in the half, Kate Cooper ‘24 shot the ball at the goalie and at first it appeared that the ball hit the net with the goalie catching it safely. However, the Tiger goalie dropped the ball and Kylie Denton ‘25 took a shot on the rebound and finally anchored the ball in the net.
As the Stony Point players rushed to score the equalizer, they attempted a shot on goal, but Samantha Walker ‘25 warded off all shots with her defensive skill. However, to the dismay of the Warriors, the referee deemed a handball on the Warriors after one of the Warriors’ arms’ accidentally hit the ball, leading to Stony Point scoring a goal.
With a minute remaining in the first half, a Stony Point player fouled and received a red card, ejecting her for the remainder of the game. In the heat of the moment, a Westwood player retaliated by showing her distaste for the foul and received a yellow card.
“I think them getting the red card in the first half definitely changed the game,” Nadia Giannetti ‘26 said. “I mean them playing [with] 10 people and us 11 let us dominate more.”
Returning from halftime, the Lady Warriors are more energized than ever. At the 26 minute mark, Molly Harvey ‘24 advanced to Stony Points’ goal and secured a goal, handing the Warriors back the lead.
“We started off slow but once we got to halftime [to] debrief, refresh and restart, [we] looked really really good and we were able to communicate and string passes really well,” Harvey said.
Only three minutes later Harvey once again drives the ball towards the goal after faking out her opponent and the soccer ball arches into the goal for the third time that night. With 14 minutes left in the game, Mia Wiele ‘26 scored the fourth and final goal, solidifying the win for the Lady Warriors.
“I have been working on one touching and two touching max which allowed me to play and string really fast,” Harvey said. “I started off with less energy but then once I started to get the feel for the game, it just clicked and went really well.”
The last girls varsity soccer game of the season will be on Friday, March 8, at 7:30 p.m. at the Warrior Bowl against Vandegrift.
Rayghen Peak • May 21, 2024 at 11:52 am
It sounds like an exciting and bittersweet kind of game! I’m glad the seniors went out with a win.
Addy • May 20, 2024 at 9:29 am
Sounds like a very exciting game! Congrats Lady Warriors!
Lucy G • May 20, 2024 at 9:15 am
This is so cool, I can’t imagine how hard playing a long game of soccer could be. The writer really captured the emotions and thoughts of the players and others involved in this event. I’m really proud of the soccer team for pulling this off and I am glad the press wrote this really well.