Gallery • 11 Photos

media by Elly Brooks

Defender Olivia Barrett ‘24 kicks the ball during the second half of the game April 1. Barrett scored the first goal of the game during the first half, which marked her second goal in the season so far. “My favorite part of the game is when I scored. I never score in games, and it kinda felt like an accident but I was proud of myself and the team,” Barret said.

Snow falls, encasing the field in a thin coat of white. The players’ muscles tense against the biting cold, their breath forming clouds of vapor in the frosty air. 

While heaters blast hot gusts of air onto the athletes on the sidelines, dozens of fans bundle together on the bleachers wrapped in blankets and jackets, watching as players sprint back and forth on the field. 

It’s spring sports season.

Spring sports must endure the inconsistent Colorado springtime and occasional snowfalls. According to 9News, the final snow of the year is predicted to fall April 29. Until then, athletes must face changing weather conditions.

On April 1, the varsity girls soccer team played against the Castle View Sabercats at 6:30 p.m. at the Douglas County stadium. According to The Weather Channel, throughout the week and over Easter weekend, temperatures held between mid 50 F and 60 F with partly cloudy skies. On game day, however, hail, graupel and snow covered the Denver Metro area.

“Playing in the freezing cold is kinda typical having played soccer in Colorado for this long, but it’s still miserable. Your feet go numb, the ball is slick and breathing cold air is painful,” forward Kaeli Nallathamby ‘24 said. “This game wasn’t so much threatened to be canceled because the weather was predicted to start during the game.”

Regardless of the forecast, the match stayed on schedule.

Kicking off-corner by 25 yards, the first goal was made by defender Olivia Barrett ‘24 and the second by forward Paisley Barela ‘25 who also had an assist. The first half ended 2-0, Jags in the lead. With roughly 20 minutes left in the game, attacking midfielder Grace Rossner ‘24 scored the last goal, securing the win 3-0.

“It was a good win. Right now, [Castle View] was ranked pretty high and so going into that game I was a little nervous because I didn’t know what to expect. Beating them by 3-0 gives me a lot of confidence going into this season,” defender Charlotte Strabel ‘24 said.

Matching the climate, the teammates were dressed in white, while Castle View dressed in red, contrasting the field. According to MaxPreps, the Jaguars secured their third win of the season, ranking them first in the 5A/4A Continental League Girls Soccer Standings.

“You get new people from different grades each year and it’s always so great to play with them and build that bond and connection over a period of time. We’re all super close,” attacking midfielder Grace Rossner ‘24 said. “Especially my freshman year, the seniors made us all so close every single year. We’ve been carrying that tradition by doing team bonding which is what kind of contributes to our plays on the field.”

The team practices every day for 90 minutes at the Rocky Heights Turf, except on game day, where instead they go through drills and warm up before kickoff. Their first game happened on March 7 resulting in a 1-1 T against Pine Creek. Their season began before spring break and have about one-to-two games per week. Their win-tie-loss record is currently 3-0-2.

“I feel like this game was the first time we really connected as a team and I definitely see the potential and the growth, which is really memorable,” Strabel said. “Playing in that weather is kind of a bummer but then on the other hand, like after the fact, it’s such a fun game to remember and definitely the end result was something positive.”