GRANTS, N.M. - Last week, the GHS Boys’ Soccer team only had one game, and it was a tough one. They faced Albuquerque Academy on Friday, October 1st. Academy is no easy competition, and the Pirates knew that going into the game.
Sophomore Lucas Rychener said, 'Academy is really tough competition so we knew what we were getting into. I think overall we did pretty good, we just need to work better as a team.”
With Kyler Bell in goal making 11 saves, the boys put up a good fight, but it just wasn’t enough to get the win. The game ended 10-0 in favor of Academy, and though the boys lost, they felt good about the effort, including senior Antonio Perez.
“I think the boys did well defensively,” he said. “We held them for a while but we ended up losing our tempo and confidence and ended up losing the match in an unfortunate result.”
On October 8, the Pirates will face nationally-ranked Hope Christian, another very difficult competitor, but by playing the Huskies before, the boys now know what they're up against. Hopefully this will help the boys come out with a better score than the last match between the teams, which ended at 6-1. Along with that, the boys also face Miyamura on October 10 for the first time this season. It’s a rematch from last year, when the Miyamura boys won 3-1.
Our girls' team also had a hard-fought game against Albuquerque Academy on Friday, October 1, at Academy's pitch. Just like it was with the boys, this matchup was without a doubt a tough one.
The girls had a bit of a rocky start, but quickly adjusted following the first two goals scored by Academy. They began to hold their own and prevent any further goals for the next couple of minutes. But inevitably, goals were scored in overtime, and they began to rack up.
“For the game against Academy I feel like we did good and pushed ourselves even though that team has a higher ranking than us,” junior Alyssa Newbery said. “We played our hardest and didn't give up.”
With Marli Prendergast ending the game with 16 saves, their hard-fought game was on display, and the team as a whole gave it their all, even if they came up short.
Later this week, the girls will also face off against Hope Christian at home, which is an opportunity to learn from their past mistakes.
They will also face Miyamura on Saturday for the very first time of this season.