A Bittersweet Season

Despite the 2-0 loss against rivalry Ladue High School in the District game, the CHS Girls’ Varsity Soccer team had a strong and bittersweet finish to their long and exciting season.  

At the beginning of the close game, Anna Dinsmore and Katie Sharp had strong defense with help from Emma Marquis-Kelly and Sara Litteken, Grace Monshausen and Natasha Jain-Poster took positions as centers, and Katherine Owings and Lauren Wolff pushed the team as forwards.

Even though the CHS Girls’ Varsity Soccer team lost, senior and captain Grace Monshausen looks back at the game with pride.

“We had a lot of determination and heart collectivity as a team, and we work hard all 80 minutes of every game,” Monshausen said.  “I am glad we finished the season as best we could.”

Junior Maddy Ackerburg and also a player on the team agrees with Monshausen and has hope for next year’s season.  “Although all of us wish the outcome could have been different for the district game, I think our team played hard until the very end, as Ladue is a very strong opponent,” Ackerburg said.  “We’ll get them next year!”

Not only do Monshausen and Ackerburg express pride and hope for their team, but junior and player Anna Dinsmore also believes that the team had a compelling finish.  “Everyone on the team tried their best and worked the hardest, and we never gave up, even in the last seconds we were playing as hard as we could,”  Dinsmore said.  “It was a disappointing loss, but we played as a team, and I’m really proud of the seniors performance for the last game.”

Looking back at the season, Ackerburg explains how the team bonded and always brought excitement during practice and on the field during games.  “Some of our strengths is that we have fun, even when our record might not always be the best,” Ackerburg said.   “I have been playing with most of these girls for three years now, so when we’re at practice, on the field, or even on the bus, I am having a great time.  Nobody hates coming to practice because we’re together making each other laugh and enjoy playing soccer, not just winning.  We’ve really bonded this season and I’m going to miss the seniors a lot.”

In addition to Ackerburg’s thoughts, Dinsmore remarks how all the girls on the team are friends and look after one another.  “We are really good picking each other up when someone gets discouraged or messes up,” Dinsmore said.  “I think for the most part there is a lot of supports on the team, and we always go into a game trying our best and playing our hardest.  If someone is upset over a loss on the team, everyone will go over and comfort that person until they aren’t upset anymore.  So, it’s really nice to have girls that will do that for you.”

Ultimately, Ackerburg describes the bittersweet memories that the team generated over the long season.  “I am very proud of my team for their resilience on and off the field,” Ackerburg said.  “It’s hard to come out of so many games with losses, but we keep our heads up and make the season fun.  We are very close and it’s always bittersweet when a season ends.”