On Friday, Sept. 18, the GDS women’s varsity soccer team defeated Jackson-Reed High School 4–1, giving the team its first home win of the season. Sophomore Elise Wosinska led the team with three goals.
GDS went into the game with a 1–2–1 record following a 3–1 loss against Georgetown Visitation Preparatory School on Sept. 15.
In the first half, GDS’ aggressive back line was on full display. “We can’t let people get by us, because we’re the last line of defense,” junior and co-captain Naomi Berger said. GDS did not allow a goal in the first half.
Thirteen minutes into the match, Wosinska received a pass and shot the ball into the bottom left corner to put GDS on the board. Wosinska was already in shooting territory when she received the ball, and she scored with little resistance from the defense. Mere minutes later, Wosinska, receiving the ball from the back line, scored another goal, almost an exact replica of the first. The goal put GDS up by two.
“Immediately, on the go, I felt that they [the Jackson-Reed defense] weren’t pressuring me as much, so I had a lot more space to turn, and they had some holes in their back line,” Wosinska said. “That’s why my second goal was a complete repeat of the first one.”
Jackson-Reed desperately tried to mount a comeback by aggressively shooting against goalkeeper and junior Elayna Lewis. But Lewis saved every shot that came her way.
Later in the half, the Hoppers took back possession and, through smooth ball movement, opened up a chance to score. After the Jackson-Reed goalie deflected a shot by junior Iris Vergow, sophomore Naomi Netter recovered the ball and scored, extending the GDS lead to 3–0 with five minutes remaining in the first half.
Coming out of the half, GDS had all the momentum, and the Hoppers’ defense and ball movement remained strong.
After a GDS fast break midway through the second half, Jackson-Reed kicked the ball out of bounds, giving the Hoppers a corner kick. GDS crossed in the ball, and Wosinska headed the ball into the back of the net, extending GDS’ lead to four and giving Wosinska her third-ever hat trick.
Ten minutes later, Jackson-Reed scored a fast break goal that put the Tigers on the board. The goal reinvigorated the Jackson-Reed team, and the Tigers took control of the game, dominating possession. But Jackson-Reed’s brief comeback was simply too little, too late. The game ended 4–1, GDS.
“We’re really working on movement together, movement on the field, and getting together as a group,” head coach Katie Redmond said.
The game also featured a passionate student section, made up mostly of upperclassmen. “Honestly, support at the games really helps us play better because we just feel hyped,” Wosinska said.
The team’s next game is at Holton-Arms School on Thursday, Sept. 24 at 4:15 p.m.
CORRECTION (Sept. 24 at 4:41 p.m.): A previous version of this article’s headline incorrectly stated that the team’s game on Sept. 18 was their first home game of the season. It was not; the team played their first home game on Sept. 15 against Georgetown Visitation Preparatory School.
CORRECTION (Sept. 27 at 7:19 p.m.): A previous version of this article misspelled Elise Wosinska’s last name.