Surrounded by a lively home crowd filled with parents for Family Weekend, Girls Soccer (10-3-3) dominated Deerfield. Shortly after, the team prevailed against Noble and Greenough (Nobles) on Wednesday, moving the team up to seventh in the New England Preparatory School Athletic Council (NEPSAC) rankings, a highly competitive position for playoffs.
In the game against Deerfield, the team ran onto the field with cheers from families echoing across the turf. Lauren Herlihy ’25 described the motivating environment, specifically how the team was energized by family and friends’ support.
“The atmosphere was really exciting. Since we played Deerfield at home on Family Weekend, there were a lot of people at our game cheering us on. It was really wholesome to have all our families there because the team really feels like one big family, so seeing everyone’s parents and siblings show up really made us want to perform,” said Herlihy.
Following the win against Deerfield, the team made its way to Nobles for an opportunity to make the playoffs. Excused from classes after fifth period, Girls Soccer and Field Hockey shared the bus to Nobles. Co-Captain Ava Davey ’25 highlighted the inspired energy on the bus.
Davey said, “We shared the bus with the field hockey team, so we were listening to really great music. We were all singing and dancing on the bus, and it was really fun. The field hockey team is obviously having a great season, so it was great getting hyped with them as they prepared for their game. We also left for our game during the school day, so we had a lot of time to bring the energy on the bus.”
Coming out of the party bus, the team started strong with a goal from Wylie Roossien ’26. Nina Oswanski ’28 highlighted the impressive goal by Roossien.
“Our first goal really got the team going and motivated us. The shot was kind of like a tap-in off a corner, scored by Wylie. In practice, our coaches really emphasized coming out of the starting whistle strong. It was great being able to execute because putting us on the board early gave us a lot of momentum for the rest of the game,” said Oswanski.
Following the game, Davey suggested some actions the team could take to find even more success. She spoke about mental composure in winning situations when the pressure is high.
Davey said, “The past couple of games we’ve been playing really well aggressively, but one thing that we can do to improve on is staying calm under pressure when we’re up one or two goals. We need to focus on making sure that we keep the ball on the ground and pass well to make sure we find success in our last games.”
Girls Soccer found themselves in ninth place in the NEPSAC division coming into the game against Nobles. Nina Oswanski ’28 spoke about the energy after the win.
“The atmosphere is really lovely on the team. Everyone’s really happy because that win moved us up in the ranking. Now, it looks like we will be playing in the playoffs so everyone’s really excited, and we know that we have to lock in to keep our spot secured. We have a couple of games left, so we’re just really [hoping] to play our best,” said Oswanski.
Herlihy looked forward and shouted out the team’s future game against Lawrence Academy (Lawrence) which will be Girls Soccer’s Senior Night. As a Senior, she reflected upon her time on the team.
Herlihy said, “ It’s going to be a really exciting game to watch. Being on this team for a few years now, it feels full circle to finally be celebrated as a Senior in our game.”
Girls Soccer will kick off against Lawrence on Friday night in the stadium.
