New Hope High School hosted their annual preseason “Classic” this past Saturday. Kerrigan Clark tells the story of the fast-paced action of the jamboree-style event.

Bright and early Saturday morning at the New Hope field, the Caledonia girls and the Lady Waves prepare to face off for the first game of the day.  The game starts off with junior Erin Williams receiving the kick off and dribbling up the line.

About 20 minutes into the game, #12 Zariah Wright was going for the ball and was kicked in the knee, causing the game to pause momentarily.  Wright walked it off, and her substitute entered.

Then, with Amber Means passing the ball to Williams and her sprinting down the field, Williams makes the first goal of the game. With another shot coming toward the Lady Waves goal, goalie Mackenzie Umanzor stops the ball from nearly going in.

Nine minutes into the 2nd half of the game, the Caledonia girls score a goal against the Lady Waves, but the Lady Waves don’t let it slow them down and continue to pursue. Caledonia almost comes close to another goal, but goalie Millie Purdue saves it, keeping the score one-to-one.

Good pressuring for Umanzor gives the team something to work for in the last two minutes of the 2nd half, but the game ends shortly after that with a 1-1 tie.                                                                                                                                                                

Now the Blue Waves prepare for their game against the New Hope Trojans.  In the first three minutes of the game, the New Hope Trojans score a goal.

With the ball coming close to the Blue Waves goal, goalie Advaith Sunil stops the ball from going in.  With three minutes until the end of the 1st half of the game, New Hope scores two goals making the score three-to-zero. The boys have yet to look discouraged about the game and continue to persevere.

Seven minutes into the 2nd half of the game, The Trojans score another goal, leaving the tally four-to-zero.  With four minutes left in the 2nd half of the game, the Trojans score another goal.  The guys are looking slightly discouraged, but with the support of the MSMS family, they are continuously pursuing.

The game ends with the New Hope Trojans winning 5-0.

Then the Lady Waves enter the field to prepare for their next game, a match against the Lady Trojans.  The Lady Waves come back harder in this game, blocking an incoming shot to the Waves goal, saving it from going in.

With Umanzor rolling to catch the ball, she prevents the Lady Trojans from scoring.  “Although improvements are to be made, we played exceptionally well and beyond my expectations,” said Umanzor.  Even though shortly after, they scored a goal, making the score 1-0 three minutes until the end of the 1st half.

Coach Chuck Yarborough continues to press the girls but also encourages them all throughout this next half of the game. With the Lady Waves down by one, they need the encouragement to continue to play their best.

Purdue serves as the goalie, running towards the ball, saving it.  Shortly after her save a Lady Trojan rushes toward her, trampling her and unintentionally kicking her in the back of her neck. Purdue walks it off and sits out the rest of this game.  

As a Lady Trojan heads toward the Lady Waves goal, Harlynn Robinson kicks the ball out of bounds to prevent her from heading the ball the length of the field towards the goal.

The game ends with The Lady Trojans securing victory 1-0.

Gallery • 4 Photos

Kerrigan Clark

For the last game of the day, the Blue Waves play Lake Cormorant.  Senior Gary Nguyen makes the first kick and the game begins.  Junior Morgan Emokpae makes a pass down the field.

Eleven minutes into the game, Lake Cormorant scores a goal against the Blue Waves.  Yousef Abu-Salah continues to encourage the Blue Waves even after the first half with the score 1-0.  Within the first five minutes of the second half, Lake Cormorant scores another goal.  Minutes later, another two goals are scored.

The boys have yet to lose determination with the score 4-0.  With much support from the stands, the boys continue to persevere throughout the entire game.  The game ends with a score of 6-0.

“It was a learning experience for the whole team,” said Emokpae after the Blue Waves game ended.  

Coach Chuck Yarborough also commented on the games, saying, “We want to take every opportunity to improve individually and as a team.  Both teams took advantage of Saturday’s preseason matches to identify strengths we can build on and weaknesses we can work to minimize.”  

With the players and the coaches thinking positively about the season to come, everything looks promising.