Under new head coach Natalie Harris, the girls’ soccer team stormed to a 15-3-1 record. Among all the wins, a Western Mass. title win over longtime rivals Monson stood out.
On November 2nd, the Mount Greylock girls’ soccer team won the Western Massachusetts championship in a very close game against Monson. The game was tied 0-0 for 94 minutes until senior captain Mila Marcisz scored off a corner from junior Nora Lopez to put the Mounties up 1-0, a scoreline that wasn’t challenged for the rest of the match. “They beat us two Western Mass. finals in a row, so last weekend was what could have been their three-peat, which I really wanted to stop, and I’m so happy that we did,” said Marcisz. “We played them twice in sophomore year, where we lost in the Western Mass. final, lost in states to them again and then junior year lost to them again in Western Mass. final–they’re our biggest rival.”
This game didn’t just become significant after it happened either–it has been one of the team’s goals since the start of the season. In terms of goals for the season, Marcisz said, “getting to the tournament was always a big one, and meeting them deep into Western Mass.–in the final –we knew that we could win, we just had to push ourselves to that next step.”
The Greylock team certainly managed to take their playing to that next step, as Marcisz detailed how “the passes were working, we were communicating well, the movement was good, and even though it was frustrating at times and we didn’t score for almost 100 minutes, when we did, it was amazing.”
A season is more than a single game though, and other moments stood out too. For senior captain Mai O’Connor, a highlight was “our senior night game against Drury; both the players and fans really made it a special day. It was so fun to see people stepping into different positions, scoring goals, and generally enjoying each other’s company.”
New head coach Natalie Harris’ guidance was another highlight. “Coach Harris has been a tremendously supportive and positive addition to the team this year and we are very lucky to have had the opportunity to work with her,” said O’Connor. At the same time, the influence of former coach Tom Ostheimer is not forgotten: “Coach Tomo’s presence is greatly missed, but his support, even from the sidelines, has been very significant to all of us,” said O’Connor.
In the end, it was the combination of past and present that allowed the team to be so lethal this year. “For my last four years on this team, winning Western Mass. has been a huge goal of ours. To finally accomplish it this year feels amazing, but it also wouldn’t have been possible without everything that Coach Tom and other players from past years have put into it,” said O’Connor.
