On Saturday, October 8, the Lady Raiders Varsity Soccer team played the Seekonk Warriors. The Raiders quickly gained control of the game. Center midfielders Jordan Woodford and Kate Bosse, both juniors, remained in control, sending many intricate through balls on the ground and long balls in the air to right midfielder and senior Morgan Lobo. Forwards Macy Paquin (sophomore) and Samantha Borges (junior) pressed the opposing team’s defense, forcing Seekonk to remain on their toes for much of the game. Defensive players Caitlyn Laliberte (junior), Madison Laliberte (junior), Olivia Rapoza (senior), and alternating right defenders Katie McCarthy and Corinne Morhy (both seniors) successfully held the back line, preventing Seekonk from scoring at any point in the game. Coach Matthew Forrest said that he felt “we took on the physical challenges and controlled the tempo for much of the game.”

The Raiders’ first goal came early in the first half as juniors Kate Bosse and Samantha Borges completed a quick combination of give-and-go’s, maneuvering around the last defenders, allowing Borges to score.  The second goal came in the second half as the Seekonk goalie let the ball slip out of her hands and Colby Yokell, a junior, hit the ball in the net.  However, the goal did not count because a player on the opposing team cannot touch the ball once the goalie has control of it. Despite the minor setback, the Raiders kept fighting. Their next goal came from an assist by junior Kate Bosse, who struck the ball, causing it to rebound off of the other team’s defense and land in the back of the net. The Lady Raiders’ third goal was scored by junior Samantha Borges with an assist from Sami Silvia, a senior. With only minutes to go in the game, senior Morgan Lobo gave a stunning cross, sending the ball flying across the field right in front of the goal, where Borges was able to put the ball in the back of the net, therefore getting a hat trick (situation in which an individual player scores three goals in one match). Coach Forrest said that in the future, the Lady Raiders will need to focus on “play[ing] with more consistency and trust.” They will work on “cut[ting] down on the lapses of effort and energy and mak[ing] quicker decisions. [The Lady Raiders] tend to either get rid of the ball too quickly or hold onto it too long.” However, Coach Forrest said that “overall, I thought we played well.” Come support the Lady Raiders in their next game at Case High School on Saturday, October 15 at 4:30 p.m.