Stratford vs. Katy Tompkins at Tully Stadium – Region 3 Championship Game – 4.1.2025

Stratford would face off against a familiar playoff opponent in the Tompkins Falcons on Tuesday night at Tully Stadium. As the game got underway, it would be the Spartans who were on the move early. The first opportunity would come less than a minute in when Senior – Mary Charlotte Paul and Senior – Ryann Weber would dispossess a Tompkins player in the midfield. The ball would be played forward to Senior – Allison Goodwin, who attracted the attention of the Falcon defenders before passing it along to Sophomore – Juliana Molinas. Molinas was able to drive forward and get a great cross off from the far side of the field that would find the head of Junior – Sydney Valentine, but the header would just miss inches over the crossbar. Just three minutes later, Junior – Sara Benton would be fouled 25 yards out and be awarded a free kick. Benton would send the ball on frame, forcing the goalie to leap to make a save. The initial save wouldn’t be enough, however, as an opportunistic Paul would tap the ball into the back of the net for the opening score. In the 6th minute of the match, Sophomore – Audrey Brendel would throw the ball in for the Spartans to the feet of Valentine, who switched the field over to Paul. Paul’s shot would be deflected by a Falcon defender but right to the feet of Goodwin. With the Falcon defense focused on Goodwin, she would play the ball into space for Molinas. Her shot would bang off the crossbar and ricochet down in front of the goal, where Valentine would clean up the mess and give Stratford an early 2-0 lead.

Tompkins would threaten 15 minutes into the match, sending a dangerous shot on frame, but goalkeeper Senior – Olivia Harbison was able to make a diving save, pushing the ball wide of the net. With 20 minutes left in the first half, Paul would be fouled hard just outside of the Falcon penalty box. The resulting free kick would be taken by Paul. Some trickery by the Spartans would pay off as instead of firing on frame, Paul passed the ball to Weber, who sprinted in behind the Tompkins wall and fired a ball into the back of the net to extend the lead for Stratford. In the 29th minute, Brendel would drive the ball to the top of the Tompkins box before shooting a laser on goal, forcing the Falcon keeper to jump and just deflect the shot over the crossbar. With a few minutes left in the first half, a dangerous ball would come over the top from Tompkins 50 yards out, leaving Harbison one-on-one with an attacker, but Harbison didn’t hesitate, sprinting forward to force the action and again punch the ball wide. Incredible defense by Brendel, Freshman – Hannah Hewitt, Molinas, Sophomore – Zoe Lawless, Junior – Avery Rushing, Senior – Whitney Bui, and Senior – Hannah Ryan would keep a talented Falcon attack under wraps for the remainder of the half.

It only took a few minutes into the second half before the Spartans would find another goal. Valentine would throw the ball into the feet of Benton, who drove past a Falcon defender to the end line, sending a cross right across the face of the goal to the foot of Paul, who was able to redirect it into the net just inside the far post to put Stratford up 4-0. In the 50th minute of the match, Bui would find Benton 30 yards, out who beat a defender and played the ball forward to Paul. She tried her luck again by firing on frame but an incredible save by the Tompkins keeper ended the opportunity. Tompkins would finally get on the board with fifteen minutes remaining in the match, but it was too little for the Falcons. The Spartans would control possession for the remainder of the match and bleed the remaining time off the clock to seal their first ever Region Championship in program history. Your Spartans are moving onto the State Semi-Finals!

Stratford Spartans vs. Vandegrift Vipers – 6A D2 State Semi-Finals – 04.04.25

Your Girls Varsity Soccer Team traveled into unchartered territory on Friday, when they left a school-wide pep rally via a chartered bus, complete with a police escort to meet the Austin Vandegrift Vipers in the 6A D2 State Semi-Finals in College Station, Texas. Stratford has been on the precipice of a postseason run like this for the past few years, battling against some of the top teams in Houston. From 2022-24, the Spartans posted a 60-11-11 overall record, are 4-time back-to-back District Champs, and made Regional Championship game appearances in 2022 and 2023. But Friday night was the Spartans’ time to take center stage. Vandegrift (16-8-3), the Region IV champion, wouldn’t make things easy on Stratford. The Vipers, who finished third in their District behind Round Rock and Westwood, controlled a lot of the possession in the first half and nearly put the first goal on the scoreboard. The green & white dodged disaster early in the match after being called for a handball in the box. Vandegrift was awarded a penalty kick, but the attempt from the Vipers missed wide right of the goal. The Spartans had several runs with the wind in their favor during the first half but just couldn’t connect on any of those opportunities.

After a scoreless first half, it was more of the same in the second until the Spartans got a free-kick opportunity with less than 15 minutes remaining in regulation. Sophomore - Zoe Lawless launched a deep kick from 40 yards out into the box, and a Vandegrift defender headed the ball into the air. Senior - Allison Goodwin then corralled the ball at her feet and got a shot off. The Vandegrift goalkeeper deflected the attempt, but Junior - Sydney Valentine was in the right place at the right time (as she has been all season) and connected for the put-back goal, to give the Spartans the crucial 1-0 advantage late in the match. Stratford was able to hang on from that point forward and seal the victory.

Now, with at least 80 minutes of action remaining for the Spartans, they’re determined to pull out one more win. Friday’s victory further cemented this team’s legacy as the greatest in school history, and next Saturday at Birkelbach Field in Georgetown, the Spartans will try to win their first Soccer State Crown. Stratford (22-2-3) will battle Flower Mound Marcus (18-4-3) at 11 am on Saturday, April 12th. The Marauders will be a familiar opponent for the Spartans, who lost a close match against FM Marcus in their fourth game of the season in early January. Three months later, the rematch awaits – with the winner being crowned Texas State Champion.