Tommaso Nigra, Reporter
The girls soccer team has really improved since last season. Coaches Alan Zoltie and Scott Nicolino can count on more than thirty players between varsity and junior varsity teams. Many of them are freshmen, giving the coaches high hopes for the future.
“The number of girls soccer players is double than last year, and we’re also fortunate to have ten new freshmen,” said Coach Zoltie. “Girls soccer at VHS has been through years of decline and we’re trying to bring it back.”
The JV team started their season on Sept. 16, and varsity played the next day, both at home. JV got off to a strong start with two wins and one draw. The varsity girls were less fortunate, following their initial 2-2 draw with two consecutive losses. Despite this, they still have high hopes for the upcoming season.
“It’s my senior year, and I’d love to go to State,” said senior captain Grace Riggs.
Last year, the Pirates saw their dreams break down in a painful loss at the end of playoffs.
“Last year, we reached playoffs,” said Zoltie, “but we lost the final match 3-2. It was a real disappointment. [This year] the goal is state.”
Riggs is sure this year that her teammates are more confident. The team’s point of strength should be a strong midfield, led by the co-captain junior Madison Browne. Browne shows great technique when the team has the possession and intense pressure when the opponents attack.
In front of this aggressive and dangerous midfield, the attack is led by the central striker, sophomore Dalia Aladin,who guarantees good quality finishing, and was fundamental in the first league match, scoring both the team’s goals.
Coach Zoltie prefers the 3-5-2 formation, which is unusual for high school teams because it requires a strong capacity of moving and changing position to reach the correct balance. On the other hand, if successfully implemented, it could be a real problem for any opponents.
To be really effective, this formation requires the movement of the outside midfielders to become more confident. They are very important because they are required to run up and down on the wings, covering the defense or supporting the strikers when necessary.
The team tends to play much more through the middle rather than through the wings, and this is one of their few weaknesses. A 3-5-2 formation gives you the possibility to push out on the wings without risking much, thanks to the three central midfielder’s coverage.
So, according to what was said by Coach Zoltie and captain Riggs, the team has very good skills and should definitely be able to do much better than the results they have had so far. It’s time to see if team’s expectations will be satisfied despite this rough beginning to the season.