Stratford vs. Memorial High School - 03.05.24

On Tuesday March 5, 2024, the Varsity Girls Soccer Team traveled down I-10 for a rematch with the Memorial Mustangs. Currently ranked #10 and #11 in the state in the 6A Division, respectively - this would be a tough game for both teams. However, a win or a tie would lock up the District title for the Lady Spartans.

Stratford would win the opening coin toss, but it would be MHS that would strike first in the 9th minute with a corner kick from the right side – but it was defended well and quickly cleared from the SHS end of the pitch. In the 23rd minute, Junior Ryann Weber would fire a shot from the left that was just snagged by the goalie. Three minutes later, Junior Allison Goodwin took a shot from the left side across the front of the goal that was bobbled by the keeper but cleared right before Weber could finish play. At the 37-minute mark, Sophomore Avery Rushing had a short shot deflected out of bounds near the goal, earning the corner kick from the right side of the field. The kick was taken by Junior Mary Charlotte Paul and sent to the far post where Senior Lizzie Emerson was there with a quick kick to the corner, out of the reach of the keeper, but just saved by the Memorial defender on the near post. A few minutes later, time expired and the game went to intermission tied 0-0.

In the opening minute of the second half, Goodwin earned a corner from the right side that was taken by Paul. Just like the end of the first half, Paul sent a perfect ball to the far post where Emerson redirected the ball with a header to the near post that was once again out of the keeper’s reach but saved by the MHS defender on the near post. In the 54th minute, Sophomore Sydney Valentine made a run up the left side and was posed to take a shot with defenders closing in but made a great pass with a heel-flick to Paul, who was trailing behind her. Unfortunately, Paul’s ensuing shot just sailed wide of the far post, keeping the game knotted at 0-0. It’s important to note that at this point in the game, MHS had several runs up the left side, all of which were completely shut down by Freshman Audrey Brendel, who played 80 minutes of suffocating defense. SHS continued to keep the pressure on for the remainder of the match, but just couldn’t find the back of the net. In addition to Brendel’s defense, Junior Goalkeeper Liv Harbison had an outstanding game as well, defending and shutting down any and all attempts on the SHS goal. As the clock ticked down to zero on the scoreless match, this was not what the Spartans had hoped for, but the tie did lock up their third consecutive District Championship with one game remaining before the playoffs begin.

Stratford vs. Jersey Village High School - 03.08.24

Friday, March 8, 2024, marked the last District game for your Lady Spartans in a match against the Jersey Village Falcons. Freshman Goalkeeper Addie Greenway would see her first start as a Varsity player and be tasked with keeping the Spartans' “no loss” District record intact. SHS would get things going quickly in the 3rd minute when Junior Ryann Weber fired a shot from point-blank range which found its mark, giving the Spartans an early 1-0 advantage. At the 11-minute mark, Senior Lizzie Emerson found Sophomore Sydney Valentine cutting toward the goal from the left side and slid the ball right out in front of her, lining up a scorching shot to the far post, increasing the lead to 2-0. Two minutes later, Emerson would be awarded with an opportunity of her own as she was breaking from the left side, Freshman Juliana Molinas made a great pass up the middle, catching Emerson in stride, who fired top-shelf past the leaping goalie to add another on the scoreboard, 3-0. In the 26th minute, off of a pass from Junior Mary Charlotte Paul, it was Freshman Sophia Beviacqua this time with a drive up the middle beating two defenders and the goalie for the fourth Spartan goal of the evening, 4-0. Two minutes later, it was Molinas off of a pass from Weber who fired a hard shot from the right side that hit a Falcon defender,  sending the ball up and over the diving goalie. This last goal of the first half would take the Lady Spartans to halftime up 5-0.

In the second half, the Spartans would switch things up and have the defensive players play offense and the offensive players play the defensive positions. Two minutes into play after the intermission, Junior Hannah Ryan played a little give-and-go with Junior Whitney Bui. Bui laid a pass off to Ryan right in front of the goal, who gave it right back to Bui, who found the back of the net just inside the far post to take the score to 6-0. At the 53-minute mark, Ryan slid a ball across the top of the box to Freshman Zoe Lawless, who picked it up in stride and fired a shot off the last defender just in between the goalie and left post for her first Varsity goal and the seventh of the evening, 7-0. At that point in the game, the Spartans begin playing 9 vs. 11 to keep the match competitive. In the 58th minute, Junior Allison Goodwin made a pass across the top of the box to Ryan, who fired a shot as the ball came across for the eighth and final goal of the evening. This 8-0 victory would wrap up the regular season for the Spartans with an 18-1-4 overall record, an undefeated 13-0-1 District record, an amazing 111 goals vs. 12 goals against record, and finally the Lady Spartans were crowned District Champs for the third consecutive year.

The Spartans' playoff run is set to begin March 23rd – as match-ups, exact dates and times are not yet scheduled. We will make that information available for all to come out and cheer this team on as they make their run in the state playoffs.