By Belle Nhan | Staff Writer

   Gabrielino High School’s (GHS) girls varsity soccer team competed at the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) tournament, as they qualified for Division Four of the Southern Section for CIF.

   In the first bracket, the team faced off against Westminster High School, on Feb. 12 at 5 p.m. They lost, 1-2 and could not advance to the next bracket. 

   Senior Kassandra Enriquez, who plays center back, explained, “The first bracket was overall a great experience as it helped me understand to play for your teammates and not [for] yourself,” she continued, “What stood out [in this match] was the urgency our team put out during the whole game.”

   Some of the players were entering CIF for the first time, while others entered the tournament for the third time. 

   According to Enriquez, having experienced the tournament before has helped her become a better player and teammate.

   It was the girls’ first time going against Westminster, who proved to be a challenging opponent.

   “The game really had you on edge the entire time, we ended up going to overtime [and the winner was determined by whoever scored first,” explained Enriquez. 

   The CIF tournament marked the end of the season for the girls, but not their passion for the sport. The competition proved to be more of a learning experience, rather than a devastating loss.

  “What was special [about this game] was just seeing the team come together more, [in comparison] to other games,” Enriquez explained, “We all worked as a team to do our best and to win with our hearts.”

   The team had a six-week winning streak, and only a total of 3 losses in the entire season.

   On Feb. 4, the girls went against Ramona Convent Secondary School in a home game, at 5 p.m. The team won with a score of 7-0. 

   Right and/or left wing player, senior Samatha Villa stated, “[During the game, there was] definitely a lot of communication and a lot of people were reading the field on our team, so they made a lot of good plays.”

  The Eagles went against El Monte High School in a home game, on Feb. 3, at 3:15 p.m., winning 6-0.

   On Feb. 1, they won 7-0 against Mountain View High School in an away game at 5 p.m.

   In another away game three days previous, the team won against South El Monte High School 5-0, which started at 4:45 p.m. 

   Villa stated, “It was [a] very dramatic [game]. There was a lot of shouting on both ends, but [in the end] we dominated that game.”

   The girls won the game against Arroyo High Schoolon Jan. 26 at 4:45 p.m. At this game, the girls obtained one of their highest scores of the season, 11-0. A week prior, the team won against John Marshall High School in a close match, with a score of 3-1.