UC High’s Girls Soccer Team is striving to have a stellar season and aims to achieve their ultimate goal of winning a League title and CIF Championships. 

   Each game is divided into two 40-minute halves with a 10-minute break between the first and second half of the game, lasting 90 minutes in entirety. The play begins with the attacking team in possession of the ball by dribbling or passing the ball, with the defending team’s job being to stop the attack from scoring a goal or getting farther down the field by intercepting the passes.

   “The season so far is going really well. Our challenges are when we go against teams that are faster and are a bit more organized,” said Senior Captain Mia Ramirez. “We are playing hard teams for preseason to be ready for League, so we haven’t been winning a lot, but we have been improving and learning,” said Senior Captain Grace Doolittle.

   On December 7, the girls had their second home game against La Jolla Country Day, a competitive, tough game that ended with a 3-3 tie. Overall, according to the team, they learned how to play together, got stronger, and persevered through the game. 

   The team practices every day, training after school for roughly an hour and a half to execute and work on their strengths and weaknesses as a team. Ramirez said, “On the field, we have a really strong defense, and off the field, our greatest strength is how well we all get along with one another.” 

   After dropping from Division 2 to Division 3 this season, the team is working extremely hard and emphasizing how important relationships off the field are with each other and how it’s crucial to connect as a team by doing bonding activities, such as team dinners, to gain success on the field. “I think the team is very close and that everyone has a good relationship with each other so that translates on the field, because we can trust each other and connect better,” said Doolittle.

   With new players and the loss of many seniors from last season, the team is still adjusting to how everyone plays individually and facing a new challenging season. Junior Monet Rahmipour said, “The seniors leaving will definitely be an adjustment for this season, but I believe we will come out stronger and accomplish great things.” Ramirez said, “Some adjustments would be communication on the field and adjusting to how everyone plays individually since we all play differently and come from different Club Teams.”

   The perfect ending of the season, especially for the seniors, would be to win the League and advance in CIFs. “ Overall, I believe the 2023-2024 Girls Soccer Team will achieve great things this year!” said Rahmipour.