With five wins, five losses, and two draws, the girls soccer team has had a consistent and successful season thus far. More so, on May 4, the girls won their first game against rival Loudoun County High School for the first time in 13 years. 

     “The game was fantastic,” Senior midfield player Kate Mercer said. “It was a very hard fought battle. We just never gave up the entirety of the game and I think we tired them out by the end.”

     The Vikings’ game against the Captains was defined by determination, tenacity, and confidence, as well as copious amounts of skill. The team’s hard work to develop their prowess on the field paid off on Thursday, despite being outnumbered by their opponents.

     “They’re a bigger team than us,” Mercer said. “I think just our speed and skill on the ball came in clutch right at the end,”

     Beyond athletic capability, the Vikings had another advantage on the soccer field: their mindset.

     “The mindset was really positive for this game,” Mercer said. “We’ve been wanting to win against this team the entire season, and we did everything to prepare to win.”

     Senior Emmely Demarciso, forward and midfield player, shared a similar sentiment about the game.

     “I felt ready. I didn’t really have any expectations going into this game. I knew they were a good team, so I felt like it would be a close game,” Demarciso said.

     No matter what each player was feeling during the countdown to game time, everyone locked in once the whistle blew, and by halftime the team was confident they had a fighting chance to win. 

     “I think the turning point was, when we came off the field at halftime, we really realized that we had the ability to win this game,” Mercer said. “We kept the score 0-0 in the first half. I think in the last 15 minutes after they scored that first goal, we realized that we really wanted to win the game and had the ability to, and we just never gave up and kept on battling it out against them,” 

     Later in the game, during the final half, the Vikings started racking up points. Demarciso scored the first goal of the game which made way for a second goal by Valley and one goal by County, and ultimately led the Vikings to a win against long standing opponents.

     “As I made the first shot, the only thing in my mind was that I had nothing to lose,” Demarciso said. “We were down 1-0, and if I hadn’t taken that shot, we might not have tied. When I broke the tie, it felt unreal, and knowing the history between Valley and County made it 10x more special.”

     The momentum continued from the first and second goals and through the end of the match, and the team rode the emotional high of success. 

     “When we scored our second goal the only thing going through my mind was that we can’t let them score,” Junior defensive midfield player Tessa Heffron said. “I knew we had to do everything we could not to let them score. It felt awesome after we won, we have been working so hard and it was awesome to celebrate with the team and know that our hard work was paying off.”

     As the girls soccer team continues to play and progress towards the postseason, they will continue to believe in their ability and maintain high aspirations for the future.

     “I definitely think it’s gonna give us the energy to be able to continue to fight against some of the other really good teams in our district,” Mercer said. “People think of us as an underdog because we are the underdog. We haven’t won as many games in the past couple of years, but this season we have a really good team, very strong, very united.”