Brynlee Cordova
The Lady Wolves hit the field ready to play and had a strong start to their season as they won two out of three games at the Pinnacle Cup Soccer Tournament.
The tournament took place in Worland last weekend, giving Wyoming teams the chance to face each other, including going up against teams outside of their normal conference competitors.
The Green River High School Girls Soccer team had their first game on Friday as they took on New Castle. It ended up being a decisive victory, with the Lady Wolves winning 7-0. Isabel Vasco led the team, scoring six of the goals, with Brynlee Cordova scoring the other point of the game.
On Saturday, Green River took on Worland, the host team and a strong competitor that is historically one of the best teams from the eastern side of Wyoming.
"Worland is ranked second in the state, so we knew that was gonna be a tough game going in," Head Coach Matthew Robles explained.
The Lady Wolves battled hard throughout, and Cordova scored another goal. However, Green River missed out on some chances to score more, while Worland ultimately had four goals. Despite the loss, Coach Robles was encouraged by how competitively his team played, and how close the game actually was.
"We really did hang with them," he said. "That four-one scoreline does not really state what happened in that entire length of that game."
After the loss, the Lady Wolves went into their third match against Powell later on Saturday. Green River has faced Powell in the past, as they are in the same conference. Last year Powell was ranked second in the conference, and the Lady Wolves were unable to secure a victory against them. This year, however, the tides turned, as Green River ended up beating Powell 4-0.
Once again, Cordova and Vasco scored the points for the team, with Cordova, who is a freshman, getting a hat trick by making three goals.
With two shut-out victories and one close defeat, the Lady Wolves were pleased with the weekend. Especially with such a young team, and having no seniors on the starting line up, Coach Robles was excited for the chance to see success and set the tone for the year early on.
"To get the opportunity to show that we can hang with them and we can beat that level of team, I think it really helped build our girls' confidence heading into this week and into the season," he said.
It was also exciting and helpful to be able to play two teams they don't normally get to face.
"We hadn't played anybody from the east yet in our years in 3A, so it was good for us," Robles said. "We got to see where we match up, not just against teams that play on our side of the state, but also throughout the entire state."
The tournament also provided an opportunity to see where the team is strong and where they still need work. Being able to score 12 goals in three games was huge, according to Coach Robles, and the team is also doing a good job possessing the ball, playing defensively, and finding and using space. The coach wants the girls to keep working on limiting opportunities for the other team to score, and taking advantage of the opportunities that come up throughout the game.
The Lady Wolves have been working on cleaning up any issues they had at the tournament as they prepare to face Pinedale this afternoon for the first game of the regular season. While Pinedale is a team that Green River has typically been able to beat in the past, Coach Robles wants the girls to be able to stay focused for the game, and thinks it will be a good opportunity for some of the younger players.
"We never overlook opponents, obviously, because any team can win on any day," Robles said. "But, comparing our roster to theirs, I think we are the better of the two teams. We are missing quite a few girls due to spring break, so we've got to have some of those younger kids really step up into the roles that they're given. And we've really got to be focused on making sure we're playing clean, smart soccer."
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