Lakeside Comets U11

In August they were twelve girls from four different schools, and Maya knew exactly one of them. She asked twice that night if she really had to go. On August 29 they played Riverton FC and lost 0–5. Nine of them had never met before August, and it showed: for long stretches the game barely left their own half. Josie made nine saves and never once looked over at the bench. The car was silent the whole way home. At a red light Maya said, very quietly, “Maybe I'm not a soccer player.” Nobody answered.

A week later, against Cedar Valley United, Lucy scored her first goal of the season, from Zoe's pass, and they lost 1–3. In the second half Maya hit the post. The whole sideline groaned. She put her hands on her head, and then she sprinted back on defense and won the ball. Afterward their coach pulled them in and said only one thing: “I saw you run for each other today. That's new.” By September 8 there was a thumping sound coming from the driveway every night. Maya, left foot, against the garage door.

On September 12, against Pine Ridge SC, Ava scored, then Harper scored from Maya's pass, and they went into halftime up 2–0. It slipped away. The tying goal came with under a minute left, and Josie was in tears in the goal. Before any adult could get there, Ava and Zoe and Maya had walked out and brought her back with their arms around her. That day was the first time they looked like a team, and it came right after the worst ten minutes of the season.

The next day they played Harbor Town FC. Lucy scored from Harper's pass. Then, in the 47th minute, Ava slid the ball across and Maya hit it first time with her left foot. The garage door foot. They won 2–1, the first win of the season. Maya didn't celebrate. She just turned around and looked for her family in the crowd. In the car, out of nowhere, she said, “I'm a soccer player.”

At the Harvest Cup they opened by beating Blue Heron SC 3–0, with goals from Zoe, Harper and Maya, and their first shutout of the season, built on a save from Josie at 0–0 that still doesn't make sense. Later that day, against Ironwood FC, Ava scored in the 8th minute from Maya's pass. In the 20th minute she went down hard, her ankle, and had to be carried off. Something went out of them, and they lost 1–2. Priya, who had barely said a word all season, went and sat next to Ava on the bench for the entire second half.

Ava came to the semifinal against Summit Rovers on crutches. Before kickoff she took off her captain's armband and put it on Priya. In the 36th minute, from Lucy's pass, Priya scored the tying goal, her first of the season, and ran straight to the bench to Ava. With two minutes left, Priya found Maya at the top of the box, and Maya didn't hesitate. 2–1. They were in the final.

The final was against Riverton FC, the same team that had beaten them 5–0 on the first day. Maya scored from Harper's pass, and Harper scored from Zoe's. They lost 2–3 on the last kick of the game. Every one of them was crying. Then Josie stood up, and they all walked over together and clapped Riverton off the field. In the parking lot, a grandfather who has watched soccer for sixty years and never says much said, “That's the best game I ever saw anybody lose.”

Six days later they met Cedar Valley United again, the team that had beaten them 1–3 in September, and won 4–1. It was Ava's first game back, and when she scored, from Maya's pass, the whole bench ran onto the field and the ref just let it happen. Maya scored twice, her first two-goal game of the season, and afterward her coach told her, “You stopped waiting for the perfect chance. You started making them.”

On October 3 they played Riverton for the third time. 0–5 in August. 2–3 on the last kick in September. Maya scored from Ava's pass, Zoe scored from Maya's, and in the final minute Josie tipped one over the bar and disappeared under eleven teammates. 2–1. On the way home Maya asked if they could stop for orange slices, like when she was little. She gave the first one to Josie. Ten games: five wins, four losses and a tie, nineteen goals scored and nineteen allowed. It began and ended against Riverton FC, with a team that had mostly been strangers in August.

Maya started the season on a new team, twelve girls from four different schools, and she knew exactly one of them. On the night of August 20 she asked twice if she really had to go.

Her first game was against Riverton FC on August 29. She played 38 minutes, and the Comets lost 0–5. The car was silent the whole way home. At a red light Maya said, very quietly, "Maybe I'm not a soccer player." Nobody knew what to say, so nobody said anything.

A week later, against Cedar Valley United, she hit the post in the second half. The whole sideline groaned. She put her hands on her head, and then she sprinted back on defense and won the ball. By September 8 there was a thumping sound coming from the driveway every night: Maya, left foot, against the garage door. She hadn't said why.

On September 13 against Harbor Town FC, in the 47th minute, Ava slid the ball across and Maya hit it first time with her left foot. The garage door foot. It was her first goal of the season, in the Comets' first win. She didn't celebrate. She turned around and looked for her family in the crowd. In the car afterward, out of nowhere, she said, "I'm a soccer player."

She kept scoring. At the Harvest Cup she scored against Blue Heron SC from Zoe's pass. In the semifinal against Summit Rovers, tied 1–1 with two minutes left, Priya found her at the top of the box and she didn't hesitate. The Comets were in the final, where she scored again, in the 14th minute against Riverton FC, before the Comets lost 2–3 on the last kick of the game. Then Cedar Valley United came back around, the team whose post she had hit, and she scored twice and set up Ava's goal in a 4–1 win. Afterward her coach told her, "You stopped waiting for the perfect chance. You started making them."

On October 3 the Comets played Riverton FC for the third time: 0–5 in August, 2–3 in the final, and now 2–1. Maya scored from Ava's pass and set up Zoe for the other. From her first goal on, she scored seven goals in seven games. A season that began with her asking twice if she really had to go ended with her asking if they could stop for orange slices, like when she was little. She gave the first one to Josie.

Ava's season began against Riverton FC on August 29, a 0–5 loss in which she played 31 minutes. A week later Cedar Valley United beat Lakeside 3–1. Then, on September 12 against Pine Ridge SC, it took her nine minutes. Ava scored, her first goal of the season, and Lakeside went into halftime up 2–0. The lead did not hold. The tying goal came with under a minute left, and Josie was in tears in the goal. Before any adult could get there, Ava and Zoe and Maya had walked out and brought her back with their arms around her.

The next day, against Harbor Town FC, it was the 47th minute when Ava slid the ball across and Maya hit it first time with her left foot. It was Ava's first assist of the season. Lakeside won 2–1, their first win of the season.

At the Harvest Cup on September 19, Ava played 37 minutes of a 3–0 first-round win over Blue Heron SC. In the second-round game against Ironwood FC she scored again, eight minutes in, from Maya's pass. In the 20th minute she went down hard on her ankle and had to be carried off. Something went out of Lakeside when she left. Priya went and sat next to her on the bench for the entire second half. Lakeside lost that game 1–2.

The next day was the semifinal against Summit Rovers, and Ava came on crutches. Before kickoff she took off her captain's armband and put it on Priya. In the 36th minute Priya scored the tying goal and ran straight to the bench, to Ava. Lakeside won 2–1 and were in the final.

One week after she was carried off, Ava was back. On September 26 Lakeside played Cedar Valley United again, the team that had beaten them 3–1 in her second game of the season. In the 44th minute, with Lakeside already three goals into a 4–1 win, Maya passed and Ava scored. The whole bench ran onto the field, and the ref just let it happen.

Lakeside had lost the Harvest Cup final 2–3 to Riverton FC on the last kick of the game, the same team that beat them 5–0 on the first day. On October 3 they played Riverton a third time, and Ava was on the field. In the 29th minute her pass found Maya, and Lakeside won 2–1.

From her first goal on September 12, Ava played six games, with three goals and two assists. She scored before she was carried off, and she scored the week she came back. In between, for one semifinal, her captain's armband was on Priya's arm.