EABH v. British, 10:00 am
Today (04/04) the EABH female soccer team played their first game, effectively kicking off the season. In previous years, EABH had not yet formed a female team for futsal, so this was the debut of the Lady Hawks’s team. Coming from a victorious season of soccer, the futsal girls faced The British School of Rio de Janeiro Falcons.
The game was nerve-wracking from the very beginning. Both teams were exhilarated and aggressive, making it evident that this would be a competitive match. In the first few minutes, the Falcons were able to score a goal, and only five minutes after that their offense advanced toward the goal again with what looked like could be another goal. However, thankfully, Laura Calixto (99) stopped the advancement with an astounding defense play, and the game went on balanced.
As the game became increasingly more aggressive, two of the Lady Hawks received fouls. Carol Bonato (14) received a yellow card when a player from the opposite team tripped. However, despite the unfortunate circumstances, the Lady Hawk demonstrated beautiful sportsmanship as she immediately made her way to the British player to ensure she was okay. With that, the first half came to an end with a final score of 0 x 1 in favor of the Falcons.
The second half of the game started very passionately, as the Falcons prepared to carry out the penalty resulting from Bonato’s foul. The ball went through the human barrier but was beautifully caught by EABH goalie Annie Santos (02). The Lady Hawks attempted to revert the game with a skillful attack, which rendered Anna Pulga (05) a near opportunity at a goal. Unfortunately, the British team was also quite proactive and scored their second goal with a slow kick. Gabriela Carvalho (09), Anna, and Laura quickly took the ball and successfully made their way to the other team’s area, but before they got a chance to score the trio lost the ball to a quick reaction by the British players. Coach Cláudio substituted Gabi with Mariana Lana (13), and both teams resumed playing.
The second half of the match was marked by multiple amazing saves from Annie, ranging from catching the ball mid-air to sliding on the floor to secure it in her hands. Despite that, the Falcons continued to continuously move closer to the goal. Anna was able to avoid a goal, kicking the ball out just before the British scored, and soon after, Gabi also stopped a goal, energetically shooting the ball up to the roof. Laura Calixto then managed her way towards the other team’s goal, but just as she was about to attempt to score, the referee interrupted her and announced that the game had come to an end, with a final score of 0 x 2.
Despite a rough start, EABH’s spirit stayed high, and the initial defeat only left the girls more motivated to perform well in their next game, which will also be taking place today at 6 PM. Go Lady Hawks!
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