SMHS GIRLS SOCCER
The Lady Rattlers season came to an end last Friday as San Marcos fell to the Medina Valley Panthers 1-0 in the Bi-District round of the playoffs.
San Marcos finishes the season with a 11-9-2 overall record after winning just two games last year.
“That was probably the most special part about tonight for these girls,” Head Coach Chase Emisol said. “They played one more game at home, all together. These girls have grown up together, their families have been around, the community coming together for these girls was a very beautiful thing. That meant a lot for the girls.
Obviously we wanted to keep going. As for the game play, the girls played with everything. There is not a single thought in my mind that nobody put 100% in. … They gave it all so it was a beautiful game to watch.”
Medina Valley scored in the 28th minute of the first half to give the Panthers the early lead. Despite the Panthers best efforts, the Lady Rattler defense held firm and kept Medina Valley from extending the lead any further including a shut out performance in the second half.
The Lady Rattler offense did their best to break through a tough Panther defense but San Marcos was unable to find the equalizing goal needed to send the game into overtime.
“Medina Valley did a great job,” Emisol said. “They dropped back seven to eight people on their defense pretty frequently to shut it down [the offense,] crowded and made it where it was near impossible for us to move the ball the way we normally do.
“Offensively, it just didn’t fall our way. We had multiple shots on goal that just didn’t fall.”
But despite the loss, Emisol is still proud of the team for what they accomplished and the lasting legacy the senior class will leave on the program.
“I’ve talked to these girls, nonstop,” Emisol said. “For me, this is my first year as a head coach and they left a legacy for me. They really are a special group of girls on and off the field. They are phenomenal in the classroom, the girls that aren’t playing soccer at the next level, have some of the highest academic accolades going into it and have the ability to go to these phenomenal schools. These girls show that there is more to life than just soccer, especially with the way they show love to each other as a team.”
cmcwilliams @sanmarcosrecord.com Twitter: @ColtonBMc
