GOAL - Thyme Lang, Addison Weiseler, Anna Blatti, Journey Utpadel, Gabby Lopez, and Sam Azure are pictured after taking a 1-0 lead against Fairmont on a goal scored by Azure.
By ELI LUTGENS
Editor/Publisher
The Waseca girls high school soccer team played three home matches last week, defeating Mankato Loyola and Marshall, but falling to Fairmont.
A Sept. 7 match against Fairmont saw the Lady Jays take an early 1-0 lead midway through the first half. From that point though, it was all Fairmont. The Cardinals scored the next four goals, winning 4-1. “We are still working to find the right combination needed,” Jays Coach Neaves said. “We are still two players missing from the active roster. I’m confident the girls will continue to adapt and play well.”
Playing against Mankato Loyola, the Jays had a slow start, but once they started scoring, they didn’t stop. A dominant offensive performance by the Jays, led to a 6-0 win, with goals by Sam Azure, Anna Blatti, and Katrina Fuller.
The Jays regular season came to its conclusion Saturday, Sept. 11 as the Jays completed their sweep of the Marshall Tigers, winning the match 3-0.
Here is some of what Waseca Head Coach J.D. Delgado had to say regarding the Jays season so far.
“In a season defined by exhaustion, as squads struggled to cope with the condensed pandemic schedule and shorter break last summer, no team adapted more efficiently than our Bluejays. Understanding that we couldn’t keep up the frantic pressing of recent seasons, the team sat back and invited more pressure.
“The Bluejays had to get creative. Defense is a full-team exercise and this season stretched every definition of how to build that team. Some of the Bluejays most dangerous passers were the fullbacks. The new defensive block duo Chloe Mansfield and Evelyn Nydegger are its most frequent ball-carriers, as well as the holding defender-at-times-acting-as-midfielder Katrina Fuller.
“They’re almost the perfect template of what Coach Delgado always wanted, which was a team of Defensive midfielders,” coach Neaves said. “He’s not far away from that.”
Coach Delgado gave praise to additional players. “Thyme Lang is versatile and always moving with the ball. Addison Wieseler is a young and creative midfielder. We have an outstanding mid-winger in Journey Utpadel, a fearless midfield with Chloe Schumach, and a very talented player in Anna Blatti. They have all performed extremely well, as have Madeline Bulfer and Sam Azure in their efforts.”