The Girls Varsity Soccer team is excited to begin a competitive season after three weeks of hard practice and scrimmages. Despite losing 0-1 in its first game against Northfield Mount Hermon, the team rebounded and won decisive games against Millbrook and Williston by scores of 6-1 and 2-1, respectively.

These early wins follow a successful season last year, in which the team won 10 straight games in a row and finished at the New England semi-finals with a final tally of 14 wins, 3 losses, and 2 ties. Sofia Weber ’20 and Louisa Essuman ’20 were both named to the prep division of the Connecticut All-State Team; Essuman also became an All-New England and All-American player, the second in Hotchkiss girls soccer history.

In response to their first game and loss of the year, Head Coach Ms. Christina Cooper remains unfazed, commenting that “losing our first game may be one of the best things to happen to us.  [The team] now needs no reminding that we must stay focused, play in the moment, and not get too far ahead of ourselves.”

With a total of 16 returners from last year, the team will be able to start playing at a high-bar from the very beginning. Taking into account new talent to the team, such as midfielder Gigi Day ’22 and defender Britney Burns ’20, the team is well equipped to face the challenges ahead of them. Four-year senior and current co-captain Bonnie Dana ’19 comments that the team must still practice hard, “No matter how many wins we get, there will be teams we are playing in the future that are just as good as [we are], if not better, and we need to be prepared for those games.”

Dana explained that, with the skill and depth of the team’s bench, younger players are able to develop more quickly by playing alongside the Seniors, and the team can use its many substitutes to stay fresh and energized late in the game. “Soccer is a fickle game,” said Cooper, “but if we can stay healthy and remember to find laughter and fun, we should have a fabulous season and [hopefully can] make a run into the tournament.”