Last Saturday, the Hopkins women’s soccer team traveled to Meredith College in Raleigh, N.C. for the Esprit DIII National Classic. Hopkins converted their first game into an impressive victory against the Emory University Eagles, finishing 1-0 with a late second-half goal.
“Emory is a tough, scrappy team, and the intensity definitely picked up as the game went on,” junior midfielder Kyla Persky said. “Although our play wasn’t necessarily as clean as it usually is, we battled hard and did what we had to do to pull off a win.”
Both teams were scoreless in the first half. The Blue Jays had numerous scoring opportunities, but they could not capitalize. By the end of the first half, Hopkins had nine shots, four of which were on the net.
After more than 77 minutes of play, the Jays finally scored the first and only goal of the game. Freshman forward Riley O’Toole took passes from senior forward Bailey Monaco and Persky to get on the board.
With only minutes on the clock, the Eagles were unable to bounce back.
Persky explained that after a hard-fought tie against Messiah College last week the team wanted to bring the same level of intensity into this weekend.
“Each and every team we play will test us in new ways, and part of what makes preseason great is the opportunity to learn from those mistakes and make the necessary adjustments so that we’re ready and able to compete when it matters most,” Persky said.
For the past four games, the Jays’ defense has shut their opponents out. Leading the Blue Jays’ defense, senior goalkeeper Bess Kitzmiller made three saves for the Jays on Saturday.
“Today marked our fourth consecutive shutout of the season,” Persky said. “Going into the year, we talked a lot about taking care of the little things, winning the 50-50s and competing straight through until the final whistle blows.”
Persky also thought that their victory against Meredith College reflects well on the team for bringing a competitive mentality and showing a willingness to do what it takes to win.
As the Jays enter their regular season, they are thankful for the opportunity to fight against so many competitive teams. They attribute their early success to the hard work everyone put in during preseason training.
“Coach Weil likes to hit the ground running,” Persky said. “For us, that means playing some of the toughest competition in the country, right off the bat.”
She also noted that after this weekend they have played five games in nine days, with another one coming up on Wednesday.
“Though it is certainly not the easy way to do things, the challenge is a fantastic opportunity to build up our confidence and try new things.”
Shifting their mindset a bit from last season, the Blue Jays expect to grow and trust that the results will follow.
“One of the biggest adjustments Coach Weil has led in terms of team mentality is encouraging us to focus on the process over results,” Persky said. “Sure, we want to maintain our status as Centennial Conference Champions, and of course we want to win a National Championship, but we’ve got a long season ahead of us.”
Persky explained the team’s current priorities.
“It takes discipline, focus and a hell of a lot of hard work to get there,” she said. “What matters now is that we take advantage of the factors in our control and let the rest fall into place as we grow and learn as a team.”
The Blue Jays will return to Homewood Field on Sunday, Sept. 17 to kick off Centennial Conference play against the Bryn Mawr College Owls. Kickoff will start at 1 p.m.
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