Girls soccer gave fans a first look at the 2024 Kits during their home opener against IC Catholic Prep—and the future is bright. With Sydney Ross, Jocelyn Leigh and Shea Lucas captaining a group of eight seniors and young talent Bridget Durkin and Alexandra Merriam stepping up to the plate, the team took a 5-0 win against IC Catholic Prep to kick off the season.
“Obviously it’s the first game and we have a lot of things to tweak and fix,” head coach Stacy Salgado said. “But there were some moments of brilliance.”
The first of these “moments of brilliance” came 14 minutes into the first half, when the one-two punch of senior Ross and sophomore Durkin put the Kits on the board after a cross by Ross set Durkin up with a clear shot. Though this first goal would have been enough to secure a victory, Evanston (1-0) didn’t stop there.
Off a soaring corner kick by freshman Merriam, senior defender Sydney Johnson scored next for the Kits, just a few minutes after the team’s first goal. Before the end of the half, a second well-placed pass by Durkin gave Merriam the opportunity to launch a shot over the head of Knights’ keeper.
“They’re just figuring each other out,” Salgado said. “They built some confidence as the game progressed and shook off their nerves. It was the first [varsity] game for a lot of these girls. They started trusting each other a little bit more, which helped with connecting passes.”
Those connections shined through during the second half, as the combination of midfielder Ross and forwards Leigh, Durkin, and Merriam danced around the Knights’ defense to fire rocketing shot after shot. Eventually, an own-goal by IC Catholic Prep (0-1) ended a 20-minute dry spell at the beginning of the second half. Just after subbing in on the offensive line, senior Lucy Fredrickson sank the final goal of the night off another assist from Durkin.
Taking after her sister—graduated senior Adrianna Merriam who now plays D1 soccer at Baylor University—Alexandra Merriam made a striking debut, with a strong left foot that lofted several corner kicks to the center throughout the night.
“[Alexandra] continues to grow as a player,” Salgado said. “It’s really fun to have her out there, for her to step in and have the confidence to take those corners and free kicks as a freshman. It’s her first game at Lazier, so we’re excited for her.”
The Kits next take on Niles West at home on Sat., March 16. Last year, the Kits beat the Wolves, 5-0, but the team is taking the season one game at a time.
“We’ll discuss tonight after watching some game film to try to figure out our weaknesses, to minimize those,” Salgado said. “And also, figure out our strengths and try to find ways to maximize those. We know we have some weapons.”
