Not the Start They Wanted: Mimbas Open with 0-2 Record

On an abnormally humid September day, the Mimbas, Stuyvesant’s girls’ soccer team, lost their 2018 season opener against Bard High School Early College. The team fought hard in the intense heat but ultimately fell short, losing 3-2.

Bard’s stellar offense proved too much for the Mimbas to stop, having twice as many shots as Stuyvesant did. That the Mimbas only lost by one goal, however, is a testament to the team’s excellent goalkeeping. Junior goalkeeper Emory Walsh saved 15 of Bard’s 18 shots, which translates to a 0.833 save percentage, a stat that any goalkeeper would be proud of. The team played an excellent second half and could have tied it up had senior and captain Allison Eng’s shot went in the net instead of hitting the crossbar. The strategy was very effective and the communication was strong all game, but the team simply could not break through in the waning minutes of the game.

In their next match, the Mimbas hoped to rebound from their disappointing loss against another tough opponent, Hunter High School. They entered this game without their starting goalie, Walsh, who was forced to watch from the sidelines after a concussion against Bard ruled her out. However, the game did not go as planned, and they suffered a disappointing 5-1 defeat. Despite the rough start, the Mimbas are still calm since a few players were late or missing from these two early games. “We hope next time we play them, we’ll be fully stacked and work together better,” said Eng, who seemed excited about the Mimbas’ prospects for the upcoming games.

Going forward, the Mimbas will have their best foot forward with the exception of junior Eve Wenning, who suffered a tragic season-ending injury prior to the first game. The team’s new depth, coming from the freshmen, should make replacing her easier, but she will be missed nonetheless. One large aspect of their game that the team must improve on is defense. “It won’t be an overnight process, though, and [it] will take a lot of work,” Eng said when asked about the team’s defense, which had allowed a whopping 30 shots combined in just the first two games of the season.

These first two losses should not bring the team’s morale down since they faced arguably the toughest competition they will face all year. Their remaining schedule is much lighter, and the Mimbas expect to pick up a few wins in the upcoming weeks.