Girls’ soccer falls to Burbank in first preseason match

By Vaughn Huelsman

Staff Writer

The girl’s varsity soccer team fell to Burbank High School 3-1 at home in their first preseason game on Wednesday, December 2. The squad played well as unit, especially considering the many new additions to the starting roster, but struggled to executed strongly enough to finish with a win.

The Tigers took control of many of the possessions early on in the game, with sophomore defender Riley Segal delivering the first shot of the game. After a Burbank player fouled her about 30 yards away from the goal, she shot a direct kick which flew a few inches above the goal post. The team continued pressing forward on offense, with a corner kick from sophomore striker Cate Latting which nearly resulted in a goal for the Tigers. However, the momentum soon shifted to the Bulldogs, as a through ball from a midfielder led to a breakaway one-on-one between a Burbank striker and sophomore goalkeeper Sophie Reynolds. The striker managed to get the ball past Reynolds, ending the half 1-0 in favor of the Bulldogs.

Burbank continued its momentum during the beginning of the second half on the offensive end, causing the South Pasadena defense to meet the challenge. Junior defender Amelia De Young led the defense with many possession-halting saves. Tiger goalkeeper Reynolds stopped several shots on goal before finally a long throw-in pass from the Bulldogs led to a short-range goal from one of the strikers. After the scoring possession, the Bulldogs continued taking shots, with many saves by Reynolds, but eventually Burbank penetrated the defense again to score its third goal. After the last goal, the Tigers again pushed forward with their attack. Segal attempted another direct kick from a long distance, this time barely missing her mark and hitting the bar. The Tigers continued to push the ball forward, with multiple passes up into the front field by sophomore striker Emily Dunn. After several changes of possession, freshman Rainey Tilley took a shot on goal, was blocked, but scored off of the ricochet. The Tigers allowed no more goals until the end of the game, but ended with a score of 3-1.

“For our first game, we played remarkably well as a team,” said Coach Robert Gallo. “We plan to work on our team fitness and improve our passing combinations on the attaching end of the field.”
The Tigers looks to bounce back for their next game at Alhambra High School on Friday, December 4.