The Lady Tigers held their annual tryouts for the varsity and junior varsity soccer teams during the week of Dec. 2. For the entire semester, the girls have been working hard in hopes of making the team. For some, it brought utter triumph. For others, it brought heartbreak. Some are back for another year ready to bring fire to the field. 

The year started out nerve wracking for the returning players on varsity. The team lost six seniors and some foreign exchange students from the year before. With losing so many older players, that meant new, younger players would be taking the places of people that the girls had bonded with.

“I [was] nervous about losing so many players because we knew how we all played, and although we had rough patches, we came back together and had great games,” senior Dulce Bustamante said. “At practice, I can see that some of the freshmen still are not confident with themselves, and they try not to mess up. [The other senior and I] tell them that practice is where you try and get it right. We are getting closer [as a team] and understanding how each other play.”  

Despite confidence issues and bonds that have yet to be formed, the new talent coming from the younger players shows promise. The varsity team this year consists of 13 freshmen and sophomores. The girls have been working hard during practices to be able to keep up with the upperclassmen. 

“I was so excited [when I made varsity],” freshman Annie Powell said. “I was super nervous because the competition on the team is incredible. [The practices] have been one of the most fun things about high school so far. I love the girls and coaches so much.”

For some of the returning players, this is their first year on varsity. Some had been on junior varsity since their freshman year, waiting for their chance to move up. After pushing and fighting for years, this became a reality for some, including senior Rebecca Richnow. She will be playing as one of the goalies for both the varsity and junior varsity teams.

“I was really excited to be able to play in general,” Richnow said. “Knowing that I was talented enough to make varsity made me feel proud of myself.”

The girls team is getting ready to take care of “unfinished business” from the years prior. The team’s slogan, “Unfinished Business,” refers to the upset last year of only making it to round one of the playoffs and not even making it two years ago. The fact that the girls keep advancing farther and farther as the years go on instills some confidence in their chances at playoffs this year.

“I believe that we are going to go far this year in playoffs,” Bustamante said. “We have improved every year in the teams, and this team I can see is getting closer. The girls are getting comfortable with the players and their different styles of playing.”

The team will kick off their season during Christmas break with their alumni game on Dec. 28 at Grim Stadium. Their next game will be against their cross town rivals, the PG Lady Hawks, on Jan. 3. The girls are ready to bring fire to the field in their first games.

“This year is definitely the year the Texas High Girls Soccer Program gets their ‘Unfinished Business’ taken care of,” Richnow said.