The crowd erupts as the WJ players flood the field and dog-pile on junior Tomas Sargologo. Another match tied deep into the second half ending with a suspenseful Wildcat win. The WJ boys’ soccer team wins another one-score game to keep alive the five-game winning streak.
“This goal means a lot and is definitely going to be one of the most special moments for me, especially since it’s my first game on varsity,” Sargologo said. “The whole team just has to keep moving forward with the right mentality and I know we’ll do well.”
A thrilling five-game winning streak against top teams in the county was exactly what the Cats needed. This winning streak, however, was not enough for the Cats to host a playoff game. Instead, the Cats will travel to Gatherisburg for a rematch against a Trojan team that gave the WJ offense trouble. Earlier in the regular season, the Trojans shocked WJ, winning 2-0.
The playoff bracket poses a ‘redemption’ opportunity for the Cats. A win against Gaithersburg would set up another rematch against top-seeded Whitman Vikings.
“The boys are excited to be able to re-match a team we lost to earlier in the year,” senior Gavin Hartz said. “But it’s important we take it one game at a time and focus on Gaithersburg.”
Regardless of the opposing team, the Cats have shown they can beat any team: taking down the region one-seed Whitman and top-five B-CC Barons in the same week.
“These wins were really important as we started off slow but the team started working together, also giving us the confidence that we can win big games,” Junior Christian Bird said.
A fifth-seeded Cats team looks to make noise in the playoffs, starting on Wednesday, Oct. 23.
