After a tough defeat to Lee’s Summit West two days ago, the Lady Bruins soccer team were ready to face Helias Catholic on Saturday, April 26 in their final game of the Jeff City tournament. In warm, windy conditions, RBHS found it hard to get going as they ended up losing 4-0.
The team still isn’t in full flight which was evident in their ninth loss of the season. Head Coach Gary Drewing said the team lacked consistency the most out of all things which made it hard for them to find any real rhythm.
“We played 20 minutes of the best soccer we’ve played all year today,” Drewing said. “We never recovered our form after giving up the first goal, and they took full advantage.”
The Bruins gave up the first two goals in a six minute span during the first half and gave up another two in a four minute span during the second half.  Junior Sydney Griggs, who plays center back for the team, said the team lacked intensity after giving up the first goal.
“The most frustrating thing was knowing that our team had it in us to win, but we couldn’t quite pull it off and show what we have to our full potential in yesterday’s game,” Griggs said.
Even though RBHS still has a winning record with 14 wins, they  are still looking to get better at every aspect of the game. Drewing said the team has had a really tight schedule in the past two weeks which has caused some fatigue for the players.
“Every loss is tough,” Drewing said. “I think the fatigue of playing nine games in 11 days is the biggest contributor to our loss yesterday.”
With eight games remaining before the district tournament, the Bruins still have enough time to start playing their best soccer. Senior Carly Raetz, who plays center back for the team, said the loss was certainly disappointing, but they know how to bounce back.
“We know what we need to do. The next step is to put it into action,” Raetz said. “I think we are still taking steps forward, and we just need to be able maintain our progress.”
RBHS will be back in action tomorrow against Sacred Heart on their home field. Griggs said they will bring a lot of energy out on their home turf.
“We are completely ready for tomorrow’s game as our bodies are recovering,” Griggs said. “We are so close to each other, so we will definitely be ready to push each other and get ready for districts through tomorrow’s game.”
By Harsh Singh