Nine wins, four ties and one loss as of Oct. 19. The girls varsity soccer team has been off to an explosive start for their season.

This season, the team has been ranked number one in the state by the Boston Globe. Despite the rigors and challenges of the sport, the team has worked to build both their skills and a strong team environment.

The group trains consistently, playing or training six days a week. According to senior Or Yahalom, who has been on the team for three years, practices involve a variety of different activities.

“We usually have a two hour practice after school, and we do take a significant portion of practice to reflect on games, and play a little game that we call ‘That’s Sweet’ where everyone compliments each other after a big game,” Yahalom said. “But we also work really, really hard. It’s super, super intense and everyone needs to be completely aware.”

The team has picked up five new freshmen this season, more than previous years. Senior and captain Maya Leschly said the new freshmen are a vital part of the team.

 “I think [the freshmen are] doing really well transitioning into the team and being able to make an impact on the field,” Leschly said. “So it’s been super fun so far.”

The team still faces challenges. According to Leschly, starting the new season means having to recalibrate. 

“I think the beginning of the season is always a little bit of a challenge. Getting everyone on the same page and what tactics you want to play, how we want to play, what our attitude is going to be at practice, and uniting people around those goals, especially with a young team can be hard,” Leschly said. “But I think we’ve done a good job of that so far.” 

According to Leschly, injuries have also been an issue with frequent and rigorous games.

“We have a really tough conference and we play two to three games a week, so making sure everybody recovers well and is at 100 percent for every game is hard too,” Leschly said.

Soccer coach Robert Sprague said  that although injuries have been hard for some on the team, they provide a unique opportunity for others.

“We have had a few injuries early in the season which means there are some players that have a little less experience that are getting more minutes than they would have otherwise,” Sprague said. “That’s a challenge but I also see it as a good thing. I mean it’s just improving the depth of our team for the long haul.” 

According to Sprague, the biggest component to the team’s success has been the consistent effort at practice and the knowledge of tactics in approaching practice, the commitment of the players and understanding of the game plans.

“[It’s] a challenge because kids are busy and they have a lot on their plates, so there’s a lot of details into what they are doing and sometimes it’s hard for them to pick up.  But therein lies the secret to success, it’s in all of those details,” Sprague said.

One of the team’s main goals is to do well in the playoffs, Leschly said. However, for her, doing well in games is not the only thing that counts.

“I think the end goal is definitely to win a state championship or make a deep run into the playoffs,” Leschly said. “But more than that, I just hope this season is just really fun and that we look forward to practice and games and being with each other, because that’s the best part.” 

Despite the challenges and rigors of the sport, Sprague believes in the team’s capacity for success this year.

“We’re really excited about this group. They’re entertaining to watch and to work with. We think we can score a lot of goals. We are off to an okay start in that regard but we also really think we are very strong defensively,” Sprague said. “If those two things can come together and we can score a lot of goals and keep the other team from scoring too often, honestly, that’s a recipe for success.”