We've Come a Long Way....

The timing of soccer season can be really difficult at times. We get started, we get into a groove, and then...winter break. Monday night we played our last game before the break. What a game it was! Last week's win against Maclay was hard fought...we battled for that win. We had worked really hard to overcome some team challenges...on and off the field. Our players were starting to figure out their places on the team and everyone was starting to get a sense of how we work together as a unit.

Monday night the hard work showed...and paid off. Florida High has always been a game that can go either way for Wakulla...and none of us were sure what to expect. Coach House had a few tricks up her sleeve and Dr. Pienta was willing to play along...so the Wakulla starting line up had a few surprises.

Coach House's ideas were pretty good. The season's top scoring player, Chelsea Sanders, began the game on the bench. Of course, she sounded ready to hack up a lung since she was fighting the crud that was ailing almost everyone since Thanksgiving. However, she soon got into the game and made her presence known.

When it came time to make start moving players around and making substitutions, Dr. Pienta stole a page from the House play book and the game really started to rock and roll. House had started one of our usual defenders, Terra Tyre, as a forward. Now, that might have seemed weird to a few people...but those people probably haven't seen Terra shoot goals during practice or warm ups. The girl has a foot! While Terra didn't find the back of the net during this game, the coaches think she will do it in future games.

While Terra didn't fulfill her goal-scoring potential on Monday, another usual defender certainly made up for it. Freshman Breanna Williams usually plays sweeper and she'd be the first to tell you that she feels like she owns that position. Pienta and Bre have been bantering back and forth all season about how Bre might score on a corner kick or even a long shot from the fifty. With a gleam in her eye and what Bre probably thought was a slightly evil laugh, Pienta told her star sweeper to move up to forward. And, Bre scored the first goal of the game.

Chelsea Sanders came off the bench to score the game's second goal. The Lady War Eagles JV squad ended the first half 2-0.

The half-time talk was heated. The JV players were hungry...hungry for more goals and a possible shut out. They had decided they really DO like playing to win...and after the Maclay win the previous week, they also were pretty sure they liked shut outs, too. The players picked over the action of the first half and discussed second half strategy. The decision was made to play as if they were two down. With a resounding countdown and a loud Eagles war cry...the JV players took the field for the second half.

The War Eagles really showed they had learned how to play together and work as a team during the second half. They communicated well on the field, passing the ball and just being where they were needed when they were needed. It worked. Forwards Kara Smith, Chelsea Sanders, and Ashleigh Crum kept their heads up and kept the ball moving. The midfielders helped keep pressure on the Florida High defense. The Wakulla defenders showed how much work they've been doing on moving the ball back up the line.

By the time the game was done, Chelsea Sanders had recorded her first hat trick -- three goals in one game--bringing her season total to eight goals. Breanna Williams had notched her first brace with two goals of her own. Goalkeeper Holly Peacock's wondrous yellow gloves continued to work their magic and the Wakulla High JV players won the game 5-0.

Now...to stay well-conditioned during the break and come back ready to play in a tournament January 10th! Stay tuned...