The River Falls High School girls’ soccer team kept its regional title streak going on Saturday, June 12 after a 7-1 victory over Holmen High School. This marked the Wildcats’ seventh consecutive …
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The River Falls High School girls’ soccer team kept its regional title streak going on Saturday, June 12 after a 7-1 victory over Holmen High School. This marked the Wildcats’ seventh consecutive regional title since 2014.
TheWildcats came into the playoffs ranked as the top-seed in the Big Rivers Conference. Head Coach Charles Conley said winning six straight titles helps keep the expectation of a seventh high, but it’s always a challenge to maintain a title streak.
“It was a lot of fun. It was great to see the girls come through. It really stuck with me that we're in the midst of a stretch of really, really good teams and some really strong moments last year, but this team just continues to overcome a hurdle, roadblock or any other speed bump,” said Conley.
A big difference for the soccer team this year, compared to years past, was that there were no team tryouts. The roster was larger than usual to accommodate for the missed 2020 season due to COVID-19. This left Conley working with ninth and tenth graders he had never seen play before this year on his roster.
“The first third to half of the season was trying out different combinations, giving people different looks in different situations to see who could contribute to the playoffs. Typically, we have three weeks to warm up. This year, we barely had a week, we were going into game action. With that you have 14-year-olds playing up against 18-year-olds; it's a different ballgame. And once we saw that comfort level build, and the familiarity with each other, it really started to get rolling,” said Conley.
TheWildcats will play New Richmond in the sectional semifinal at 7 p.m. Thursday, June 17 at River Falls High School. New Richmond beat Onalaska 2-1 last Saturday to advance to this game.
Conley spoke on his scouting report and expectations for Thursday’s game against New Richmond.
“I think if we play our best we should be in pretty good shape,” he said. “I think New Richmond goes by that group on the field, but they have not been tested out there like we have, with us playing Eau Claire Memorial and Hudson twice. We are definitely battle tested and ready for the playoffs.”
