Despite the 1-1-1 record from their three-day tournament this past Thursday through Saturday, the Bruin boys soccer team made a loud statement while battling some of the best teams in the nation.
Taking on the best team in the state of Missouri, the Bruins fell to Chaminade 1-0. Allowing Chaminade to capitalize on an important scoring situation, the Bruins also did not take their chances to score when opportunity persisted. But even with the loss, the Bruins came away with their heads held high, learning from their performance.
“We dominated the Chaminade game,” senior captain Salim Gumati said.” But they finish on one of their two dangerous opportunities, while we couldn’t convert on any of our ten dangerous opportunities.”
During their second game against Rietz Memorial, the Bruins faced a challenge to their teamwork, ending the match with a tie.
“[It] was a very even game,” Gumati said. “But we did not have a very good game as a team, and being able to pull out with a tie when we weren’t playing very well is big.”
The Bruins pulled out for success in their last game against St. Xavier, coming away with a 1-0 win. Learning from their first two games, teamwork was the main factor in their success. With no true standings in the tournament, such as a first, second or third place overall, the tournament stood as a learning experience for the Bruin boys. With the goal to win state, this weekend proved their chances of coming out of top are good.
The outlook for the rest of the season is strong because of a growth in team chemistry and the ability for the boys to play off of previous games, learning from mistakes and successes.
“Even though we didn’t finish near as high as we wanted to, we showed that we can continue to hang with not only the best teams in the state, but the nation as well,” senior captain Cooper Smith said. “We aren’t just a public school from Missouri anymore. We are more than that now.”
By Maribeth Eiken
