By Jack Ankony, sports editor
In their last game of the weekend against Lake Zurich on April, 23, the varsity girls soccer team faced their first deficit. Within twenty eight seconds of starting, the Knights were already in a 1-0 hole.
“[After the first goal] we thought ‘oh crap I don’t know how this is going to turn out,’” senior outside midfielder Taylor Sliwa said.
The Knights mounted a strong comeback led by sophomore Shawna Stokes, who scored two goals in the second half. Sliwa credits the comeback to their mindset they maintained throughout the whole tournament.
“We had the motivation during the whole tournament that we weren’t giving up and that we were going to play hard the whole time,” Sliwa said.
The Knights secured the tournament championship by a score of 2-1. Head coach Tom Froats believes their defense carried them to the three victories, only giving up one goal all weekend.
“[The defense] was very good, very sound,” Froats said. “The players on the back line did a really nice job of staying tough and strong in the back.”
In their other games, Prospect beat McHenry 2-0, Wauwatosa East from Wisconsin 1-0, and finally Lake Zurich in the championship 2-1.
Aside from the strong defensive effort, Froats thinks the depth of the roster helped them get through three games in two days.
“We have starters, but our reserves have all been starters at one time or another and are all very capable,” Froats said. “When they step on to the field I don’t worry about things dropping off, I look to see how they are going to raise or elevate our level of play.”
For Sliwa, she thinks this was probably the best tournament they have played in because of the way they collaborated and played together.
“We can look back on the tournament and see that it’s a big achievement for us,” Sliwa said. “We can say ‘look how we fought that battle to the last minute.’”
Looking ahead to the rest of the season, Froats explains that the team should be playing with a little more confidence after beating a Lake Zurich team who they lost to last year 5-0.
Up next for the Knights is the Glenwood invite in Springfield, Illinois. Prospect will face Glenwood, Maine South, and Morton high school. Froats believes these teams will provide the Knights with a challenge and opportunities to improve and get better each game.
In Sliwa’s last year in the Knights uniform, she wants to end the season on a high note.
“I’m looking forward to tapping off the season with them,” Sliwa said. “This team is so fun to be around, and I just want to finish it to the fullest.”
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Girls’ soccer unbeaten in Knights Invite
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