Parmis Sahrapima, Web Co-Editor-in-Chief
With only three minutes left to the first half of the game, girls’ JV soccer player Carmen Garrido made her way across the field to help her teammates in their match against Lawndale. The final score stayed tied at 0-0.
There were a few good opportunities for both teams, but all attempts were eventually blocked. The Normans came across many good chances at a goal, but Lawndale seemed to obstruct these chances for them. With the referee blowing the whistle to end the first half of the game, the two teams retreated back to their stations to receive a few words of advice from their coach.
The Normans sat around Coach PJ, who discussed the plans for their second half of the game. PJ played a prominent part in boosting the confidence of the Norman team and getting them on the right track.
As Garrido said, “Coach PJ strengthened my confidence by telling me calmly what to do, what I was doing wrong, and how to fix it without getting mad unlike other coaches. He does the same with the rest. He’s always so calm!”
With both teams focused on strategically defeating their opponents, the second half began with a greater intensity applied from the players. With 25 minutes remaining, no shots were made, yet through many attempts were made from both teams. The Normans came very close to making a few goals, but the lack of force into the ball gave the Lawndale goalie an advantage, preventing the Normans from their many almost-successful attempts. Lawndale also came close to a few shots themselves, but the Normans were also determined to not let themselves down.
As the ball passed back and forth through the field, the second half ended with a score of 0-0. But what may seem the case to viewers is much different from what the actual players on the field experienced. Even though it seemed that the Normans were satisfied with sharing the outcome, they were expecting to come out the only ones victorious.
“I don’t believe my team deserved a tie. The other team was really lucky each time we missed a goal on their side of the field. I still can’t believe we didn’t win. My teammates and I weren’t too upset but we were shocked at how unlucky and out of shape we were,” Garrido said.
Though the Normans had set up many good opportunities for themselves, it was, as Garrido put it, their “lacking fitness” that faltered their chances. “We just got back from winter break and we are in poor shape, but I don’t see how a couple sprints won’t fix that,” she said.
Even though the Normans didn’t get their desired results, tougher and more intense matches await them in the future.
“I think the toughest match will be against SAMOHI, just because it’s a classic. Playing against El Segundo was really hard as well. They are absolutely amazing, as well as Palos Verdes,” Garrido said.
Even though Garrido has played against many other schools and has faced “many wins, losses, and ties,” her team has become a very important aspect of her soccer life.  “To me it is very special to play for BHHS. I wouldn’t like to play for any other school, there is that little special something at Beverly,” she said.
Even though the results from their match against Lawndale were not what the Normans had expected, it seems that the Normans are mentally as strong as ever and aren’t willing to back down from the fight. The girls’ JV soccer team is just warming up for what lies ahead.