Once upon a time, there was a wise man who said that when people speak of Bob Jones soccer, they are probably talking about boys’ soccer.

Okay, so maybe that wise man was actually junior varsity coach Michael Hart—girls’ junior varsity coach, that is.

Hart laughs, “That’s a little joke that [the girls’ varsity coach] used to say occasionally.”

To those who may not be aware (and may be living under a rock), there is indeed a girls’ soccer team. Two, actually—one varsity and one junior varsity—and so far, they seem to have a promising season ahead of them.

This year’s varsity team has only played five full-length games. Of those, just two were losses. While losses are still losses, the team is proud of the progress–specifically, their tie against Vestavia Hills and 4-1 win against Grissom–that they have made since the end of last season.

“So far, we’ve been pretty successful,” says Kyra Gomes, a junior on varsity. “We’re set to play against a lot of challenging teams this season, but we’ve been working hard, and I think it will pay off.”

“We’ve been working our tails off,” sophomore teammate Hannah Earnst agrees, “and we’re still developing.”

Of course, the girls haven’t had quite as much time to practice as they hoped. The recent snow and ice spells caused multiple practices, as well as several games, to get cancelled.

“The snow days have made practicing difficult,” head coach Tony Schroeder explains. “But we have a young team, and they’re playing hard—playing well—and if they keep it up, we’ll have a very successful season and hopefully even win a state title.”

The girls may be working hard, but they are always likely to appreciate any support that their peers have to offer.

“When people watch us play, it’s really motivating, and I like that,” Earnst says. “I like the motivation.”

On the JV side, there is also room for improvement. (Then again, isn’t there always?)

“This year, our JV team is a lot more structured,” says Jenny Thornton, the eleventh-grade team captain for junior varsity. “Lately, all the school cancellations have made things interesting…but I’m positive that from this point forward, we will progress immensely.”

As both teams practice and continue to make progress, hopefully they will not do so alone. Still, they don’t play for an audience; they play to win.