The Evanston girls soccer team’s past two seasons have been direct copies of each other. Both have seen the team finish with a 19-3-1 record in the regular season, before being stunned in the devastating playoff matches at the hands of Lane Tech in the sectional semi-finals.
“It’s been a rough couple of years for ETHS soccer when it comes to heartbreaking losses against Lane Tech in the playoffs. That’s why my number one objective this season is to finally defeat them,” said senior and Amherst College commit Maddy Valera.
While the past few years have had disappointing endings, they were still extremely successful in the sense that ETHS has now solidified itself inside the top ten of the IHSA state rankings. A huge part of this recent success can be attributed to Jocelyn Leigh and Sydney Ross, who both graduated in the spring of 2024. Leigh led her new team, Loyola University, in scoring as a freshman this fall before transferring to Marquette. She finished as the Kits all-time second-highest scorer and was an All-American.
“It will be incredibly hard to replace Leigh and Ross, but I am super excited to see new players step up and frequently get the ball in the back of the net,” stated Head Coach Stacy Salgado.
Salgado has been utilizing open gyms to get her team physically in shape for the season, which is important to help with the transition from club soccer season.
“Club soccer is always much more tactical, while high school soccer relies more on brute force and speed,” commented Valera.
The open gyms, along with other team gatherings, are not only good for building physicality but are also for ensuring the team has gelled before the season has even started
“Because our girls are spending time together six days a week, they have all grown close and some great friendships are being formed,” remarked Salgado. “The ability to work as a team is one of the things that I am most excited about.”
Another major goal of the team is to increase attendance and support at their home games by working with the Kit Pit as well as photographers to increase the team’s presence on social media. These goals align with other girls sports programs, who continue to seek out greater coverage and recognition.
The Kits will open their season at home against IC Catholic Prep on March 18th.
