Girls Varsity Soccer had their first game week the week before Spring Break, winning two and losing one.

On Monday, they had their conference opener away against Marist. They demolished their opponents with single goals from freshmen Annie Fitzgerald and Ivana Vukas, a brace by sophomore Johnna Caliendo, and a stunning hat trick by senior Anna Casmere, sending the Redwings forward unanswered 7-0 and 1-0 in conference.

However, the highlight of the first game week was Benet Academy’s game against Glenbard West.

The Redwings had their home opener on Tuesday with a challenging but rewarded a 2-1 victory over Glenbard West. Though Glenbard scored first in the twenty sixth minute from a deflected clearance, we got even in the thirty sixth when senior Anna Casmere was fouled in the box, and sophomore Keira Petrucelli converted the subsequent penalty.

In the second half, the Redwings held Glenbard scoreless. Several phenomenal saves by goalkeeper Shannon Clark kept the Redwings in the fight, but it seemed like they would not score for a while. However, with 4 minutes to go, Casmere had a thunderous shot that knocked off the crossbar straight into the feet of Vukas, who volleyed it into the back of the net! Shannon Clark saved the next Glenbard opportunity, and the final whistle blew.

 Redwing Player of the Game Vukas was delighted with her performance. During the goal, she kept a single-minded winning mentality. “I was just thinking about how if we didn’t win this game, it would get us off on the wrong foot and be disappointing for the rest of the season.” It seems like this winning mentality has spread over the team. The rest of the season will be exciting.

 Finally, on Thursday, the Redwings had a tough loss to Plainfield North, losing 4-0. However, this was not a Conference Game, so it will not hurt the Redwing’s chances of going to state. Goalkeeper Shannon Clark had a stunning 15 saves that mitigated the damage of the loss.