The girls soccer team takes on Greenwood tonight in their sectional opener at Columbus East. The team hopes to continue their undefeated streak against Greenwood, who has never once beaten the Trojans; however, the two teams have not faced off since 2019. Center Grove is looking to reclaim the sectional title after falling to Bloomington South 3-1 in the sectional semi-final last season.
“This game is so important for us because it’s our first postseason game,” starting wingback Addy Wiesmann said. “Last year we lost in the first round of sectionals, so especially now being a senior, we know how important it is to win.”
Already this season, the team has faced challenges, with multiple injuries and the graduation of one of last season’s leading scorers in Kylie Smith. Despite the fact that the Trojans have had to switch positions and craft new plays, the team avenged last year’s loss to Bloomington South with a 1-0 victory in the regular season. The confidence the Trojans take from that win will be key as they face off with an unknown opponent.
“We practiced hard on Monday and had a team dinner to bond and talk about the game before we play tonight,” sophomore Aubrie LeMasters said. “Nobody on our current team has played Greenwood before, so we’re going into the game with an open mind.”
Greenwood, who is on a five-game winning streak, is led by freshman Katia Loper who is leading the team with seven goals across the year. Loper and junior Lillian Rollings team up to be a potential scoring dual threat.
“Our plan going into the game is being a hundred percent there mentally because we have yet to play Greenwood this year so we will have to adapt to their playing styles as the game goes on,” starting forward Maddie Guilfoy said. “We also have a stronger roster going into sectionals due to all the injuries that happened around this time last year.”
A win tonight will send the Trojans into Thursday’s semi-final against either Columbus North or Whiteland where a berth in the sectional championship will be on the line.
“Our team is a lot different than last year along with our mindset. We know that it’s easy to lose and end our season, so we can’t let off,” Wiesmann said. “Being a senior also puts more emphasis on making it far, because for most of us, it’s our last time ever playing soccer.”
