Girls soccer shows determination in injury-filled season

For their last game of the season, Samo played against Corona Del Mar in the first round of CIF, ending in an unfortunate 0-2 loss. Coach Jimmy Chapman concluded that the main reason why Samo came short in moving onto CIF was due to the unexpected amount of injuries this season. In addition to some of his girls not being entirely strong and healthy, he also pointed out that Samo was put at a disadvantage because they were playing on a new field.  “All things considered we played really well, playing one of our strongest games in CIF. But not winning league meant we had to travel to another school for the first round, and not having a home field advantage was tough. It was a good game, but we did not finish some opportunities we had earlier on in the game. When it came down to it, our injuries kind of put us in a disadvantage,” Chapman said.  Now that the winter sports have come to an end, the girls soccer team will be celebrating all their hard work and commitment with a banquet on March 21. There, they’ll recognize and say farewell to their seniors. From Feb.19 to 23, all players reported to junior varsity Coach, Nicole Yumori’s room for study hall. Not only did the girls have some extra time for homework, but they were also asked to complete self-evaluations.  “Right now we are going to begin the off-season. For this week we are doing study hall, to kind of give the girls a break, giving time back to the reason why the girls are here: academics,” Chapman said. “We also do exit interviews where we evaluate how they did this past season, how they played, strengths and what we expected growth wise for next season, to make us even better. Many student will take that and use it as kind of areas of growth they can work on during off season.” But the girls won’t be far from soccer for too long as they will need to stay strong with their weekly off-season practices. As they busily prepare for next year, Chapman’s main focus is training the existing players for a successful returning tryout, from May 21 through 25. These returning tryouts will only determine which players will continue to play for the program next year, but not decide which team they will play on. This season encompassed continuous, countless injuries towards the end of the season. A total of seven injuries including a torn ACL, concussions, sprained ankles and broken jaw were all painfully bountiful. But these girls quickly accommodated and pulled through, still qualifying for CIF.  “We unfortunately had a lot of injuries, but I think we played pretty well, given our circumstances. Overall it was a good season, and since there were about 13 seniors last year, it felt like a whole new team,” Bria Stocker (’20) said.  Besides these unexpected injuries this season, Chapman is still very encouraging and positive towards the team and their overall play. “I was extremely proud of the way the girls finished up the season. While we didn't meet all the goals we set ourselves, we had a lot of positives that you don’t always see on a record or a trophy,” Chapman said.