Inspired by the 1-0 victory of the girls’ soccer team against Bloomington Jefferson, senior captain Alanna Franklin reflected on the aspects of the first game that produced a lot of offensive attacks. 

“We were really excited for our first game, so we had a lot of energy to bring to the table,” Franklin said. “We were trying to play simple and defensive. But, we managed to make a lot of offensive plays.” 

According to head coach Benjamin Kent, the game plan was to play by the book and stay in front of the opposing team’s offense. 

“(Our plan tonight was) just working back defensively and to try to keep the pressure off of our defenders. So, we kept it pretty simple today because it was the first game and there were a lot of new varsity players,” Kent said.

Junior captain Sophia Romero said they’ll be focusing on how to play more swiftly on the grass next game as their home stadium is a turf field.

“We’re gonna learn more about how to manipulate the ball on the grass so that we can go use the grass as part of our strategy, instead of using it as a difficulty against us,” Romero said. “That way, our whole game can be just all about us playing instead of looking at our obstacles.”

Kent said their 20-hour training week was difficult. Every weekday, the girls’ soccer team had morning strength training and evening soccer practices that pushed the girls to their limits.

“It was huge that they were willing to put in the time, it definitely took a bit of a toll,” Kent said. “We didn’t do a year-round lifting program. So, we decided we were going to go kind of intense in the preseason.”

According to Franklin, they’ll be working on different offensive attacks and feeding the ball to the outside for their next match.

“We’re going to definitely plan offensive strategies and play more defensive when we have turnovers,” Franklin said. “Also, just connecting with each other on long balls and short passes.”

The next game will be 5 p.m. Sept. 10 at the St. Louis Park High School Stadium against Robbinsdale Cooper.