The girls varsity soccer team defeated Braintree High School 3-2 in penalties on Friday, Nov. 8. at Parsons Field during the round of 16. With this win, the Warriors secured their ticket to the elite eight.
As the number three seed in the state tournament, the Warriors entered the game against number 14-seeded Braintree as heavy favorites. The Warriors struck first as junior Elin Lindgren-Palm scored early off of an assist from senior and captain Sydney Freese.
Shortly after, things began to unravel for the Warriors. Braintree scored back-to-back goals just before halftime, and the Warriors went into the second half down 2-1.
However, the Warriors showed no panic, as head coach Ben Peters remained confident in his player’s ability to overcome their deficit.
“We came out of the first half a little frantic, and obviously they put a couple away at the end of the first half there,” Peters said. “But I just told the girls, ‘Keep working hard, keep believing, have confidence in yourselves and each other, and we’ll get through this.’”
The Warriors were rejuvenated in the second half, applying constant pressure on Braintree. On a free-kick assist from junior Mirabelle Keselman, senior and captain Vilena Tchernychev secured her first postseason goal, to even the score to two apiece.
As the game continued, Braintree did not back down. The Warriors had played Braintree earlier this year and had lost 2-1. Due to their loss, senior and captain Makena Hammond was not surprised by the tough nature of the game.
“We faced Braintree in the past this season and it was equally as difficult, so coming in we knew it wasn’t going to be easy. But in the end, it was mental toughness that got us through,” Hammond said.
Toward the end of the second half, Peters made a gutsy decision, subbing in sophomores Haley Ament and Juliana Segal, both of whom had been sidelined for the majority of the season due to injury.
Ament had played an important role for the Warriors before her injury, and did the same in her first minutes in well over a month, as she once again played a crucial role offensively.
“I just know that everybody on my team will support me and it’s really just their support that helps me play my best and perform my best. I know without any of them I could never have done that,” Ament said.
With the score tied 2-2, the game proceeded to penalties after two periods of extra time. Freese was the first to shoot for the Warriors, and after a goal from her and a miss from Braintree, the Warriors had an advantage in the shootout.
Both teams would knock down their penalties in the next three rounds of the shootout, leaving it up to Tchernychev with a chance to win it for the Warriors.
As a hush fell on Parson Field, Tchernychev shot the ball into the bottom right corner, securing the Warrior victory and sending the stadium into complete pandemonium.
After watching such an emotion-filled victory, Peters said the group he is coaching is incredibly tight-knit.
“One of the most unified groups I think I’ve seen in my ten years here. They’re so tight, everybody from seniors all the way down to the sophomores,” Peters said. “Everybody just loves each other, they’re all sisters.”
