by Carter Braun

The girls varsity soccer team celebrates after their win over Bowie in the quarterfinal game with a score of 2-1, sending them to the semi-finals.

The Warriors have earned a spot in the state semi-finals after a 2-1 win in the quarterfinal on November 6 against Bowie, who had lost only once during the regular season. That win came after the girls soccer team finally got over the hump in regionals by beating the Blair Blazers on November 2 in penalty kicks after the game ended in double-overtime tied at 0-0. The Warriors previously had come up short against the Blazers in the regional finals in both 2018 and 2019.

The Warriors will face perennial powerhouse Whitman in the semis tomorrow night at 7:30 at Gaithersburg High School. The Warriors faced the Vikings on September 4 and were badly beaten 9-0. However, that game was more than two months ago and only the second game of the season under new coach Kristina Bryn. Since then, the Warriors have gone 11-2.

“Right now the team is on a high. We are just as shocked as anyone else that we have made it this far, but also incredibly proud that we have taken Sherwood girls soccer further than they have gone in years,” said central defender and senior captain Sophia Jasnow. “We are under no illusion of the result from the last time we played Whitman and of course the outcome was not what we wanted. However, we are confident that the team we have become, discipline we have learned, and trust we have earned from each other will bring a different outcome. Whitman isn’t gonna know what’s coming.”

Whatever the result of tomorrow’s game, the Warriors accomplished a long-time goal of the program by becoming regional champions. That it came against Blair made it even sweeter. When asked whether or not there was any added motivation to beat Blair, central defender and senior captain Ari Welch responded with conviction. “Definitely,” she said. “After the last game, they even taunted us on their Instagram page, so the long-standing rivalry between the two teams brings out a certain hunger to win.”

The game against Blair was back and forth in regulation as players from both teams had limited chances to score, ending the second half at 0-0. Sudden death overtime came and went with both teams remaining scoreless leading to a penalty-shootout. But Sherwood had full faith in senior goalie Rebecca Hjelle; rightfully so. After a made PK from Sherwood, the game was in Hjelle’s hands in the 8th round, who made a wonderful save that seemed to have ended the game. The girls celebrated, jumping up and down. There was only one problem; Hjelle had gone off of her goal line, which resulted in a re-kick. Hjelle was not fazed as she made another outstanding save on the 2nd try to send her and the Warriors to the state quarterfinals.

“I was honestly thinking ‘just my luck’ and that we were now going to lose. I thought there was no way I could save another shot by the same person,” said Hjelle. “But I remembered what my goalie coach John Young told me about staying calm and collected. So when the ref called us back to the line I decided I was going to dive the same way as she shot first.”

The Warriors began their playoff run as the No. 2 seed and faced off against Wheaton in the first round. After beating Wheaton 4-1 in the regular season, the girls backed up their confidence with a dominant 7-0 win after setting the tone early with a penalty goal two minutes in by sophomore Katie Rocklein. In the second round, the girls drew an intriguing matchup against No. 3 seeded Einstein. In the regular season on September 30, the girls won 3-2 at Sherwood in overtime off of a free kick by senior Giulia Murray.

In the playoffs, the game was a different story as the girls poured in the goals during a 6-2 victory. Six different players scored for the Warriors, and the team will count on that team balance when in the semi-finals.