The South Portland girls soccer team might have suffered their first loss of the season to Gorham last week, but up and down the line-up the team is embracing that game as a key point in their season.
“It was the best we’ve played this year,” said sophomore Stephanie Masters.
“We showed ourselves how well we can play,” junior Jordan Blondin said.
The Red Riots are 2-1 coming into games against Deering and Westbrook this week. The girls followed a 6-1 beating of Thornton Academy with a 2-1 win over McAuley to open the season.
On the road Friday against Gorham, a single second-half goal was the difference in the 1-0 defeat.
“It was a hard loss, but it was probably one of the best games of our season so far,” said junior goalkeeper Jackie Rice. “Watching from the goal side, it was unbelievable how hard we played to every ball.”
Coach Greg Damon believes that there are more competitive programs in southern Maine than there used to be. He counts six or seven teams that can beat anyone else on a given day, and he adds, “We hope to be one of those teams.”
South Portland was 11-4 last season and the Riots were eliminated in the quarterfinals of the state tournament. Much of that team is back this year.
“It’s starts for us in goal. To me that is the most important position on the field, and Jackie Rice has done an outstanding job,” Damon said. “Hanna Gregor is critical for us in the middle of the field. We feel like if we can control the middle of the field, then we can win most games.
“Our defense has been great. Elisa D’Amboise is an anchor back there, as is my sweeper Jamie Harmon. All of our defenders are physically very strong.”
On the offensive side of the ball, Rice likes what she is seeing from her perch in goal.
“We’re looking up and seeing open players on the side,” she said, “passing to the wing and getting open shots from outside and from the middle.”
Masters feels that the girls are focusing more on playing as a team than in the past, and everyone is getting along more smoothly.
“We set goals before the games so we can decide what we need to do better and what we need to work on,” she said. “Things like communication, to talk to each other more and to pass the ball when people are open.”
Gregor is also happy with the way the season has started, though she is concerned about the Riots getting motivated for every game
“Some days we’re on; other days we get frustrated, and it falls apart,” the junior said. “We play harder against more competitive teams, but we play down to weaker teams.”
Blondin thinks that South Portland will be one of the teams to beat when the post-season rolls around.
“We’ll definitely be a contender,” she said. “The rest of the season we’ll be picking up the pace.”
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