The Patriots took on their biggest rival, the Churchill Bulldogs, at home on September 14.  The Patriots took on their biggest rival, the Churchill Bulldogs, at home on September 14. Starting the game the team was already shorthanded against the tough opponent since their starting goalie, senior Jill Geline, was injured and did not play. She was replaced in net by junior Gabi Heitmann who played well for the team, only allowing one goal the entire game despite facing pressure from the Bulldogs. Their first goal came in the first half when senior forward Sarah Dellapa received a pass from fellow senior forward Alex Poltorak. The Patriots stuck again in the second half to go up 2-0. This time Poltorak had a goal of her own coming off of a rebounded free kick.

Later in the half the Bulldogs made a late game push to try to even the score. They scored one goal but their comeback was stopped by the Patriots. The final score a 2-1 win . “I wasn’t expecting to play but everyone in front of me really played well and that certainly helped me out a lot. I’m glad that we all played well enough to get the win, especially since I know we haven’t beaten them in a while,” Heitmann said.

Two days prior to the Churchill victory the team went to D.C. to take on Saint John’s. The team fell to Saint John’s 5-1 with their only goal coming in the first half when senior forward Caroline Wang scored off of a throw in by senior midfielder Bella Lazzaro. “I think we played a lot better than the score indicates. It was just a collection of little things that added up I guess. It certainly didn’t help us that a couple of our key players were hurt and did not play,” Lazzaro said.

The first game of the girls’ season was at Poolesville. The game started rough for the team as they let up two goals within minutes of each other and then ending the first half down 2-0. From the start of the second half the team went on a 3-0 run resulting in a 3-2 comeback win. The first goal was a header by sophomore midfielder Miranda Wright coming off of a corner kick assist by senior Captain Jillian Gonzales. The next two goals came off rebounded shots and they were scored by junior forward Lexie Zinselmeier. “We were a little discouraged going into the second half of the game but then our coach gave us a pep talk and said we would score at least once in the first five minutes and once we did we took all the momentum back. All in all I think that we played well against Poolesville,” senior Captain Deanna Schaeffer said after the win.

The team played Clarksburg Sep. 18 at home. They won the game 1-0 with their only goal coming in the second half off of a Schaeffer goal from about 20 yards out. Heitmann played once again and had an eight save shutout, leading the team to vitory. “The team played well despite only scoring. I am glad I could help the team and score. Gabi played really well and really helped us out,” Schaeffer said.

The team’s next game is at home on sept. 20 against Richard Montgomery, too late to be covered in this issue.

Sam Greene

Senior Sports Editor