The Varsity soccer team beat Basha on the road in their quarterfinal State matchup on Tuesday evening, beating the Bears 3-1. They now move on to the semifinals against Hamilton next Tuesday night at Hamilton.
 

The Gators started slow and were down 1-0 early in the first half, but they would soon regain momentum and tie the score 1-1 when senior defender Bianca Willis served a ball into the box that the Basha goalkeeper could not handle, allowing senior Kateri Etsitty to tap the ball in for the score. 

The Gators started to play much better going into halftime and then would come out in the second half connecting passes and creating opportunities. 

Senior forward Elie Lopez came into the game and provided instant energy. Elie received a ball and dribbled it across the field towards senior Captain Olivia Yu, who received Elie's pass, accelerated by the Basha defenders, and blasted an upper-90 goal by the Basha goalkeeper for the 2-1 lead. 

Two minutes later, Olivia delivered a perfect pass to fellow senior Kyleigh Carr, who tucked a beautiful goal to the far post for the third score of the night. 

Senior goalkeeper Chloe Cundiff played outstanding and made numerous saves throughout the game. 

The back line of seniors Bianca Willis and Ivy Schuman, along with juniors Sophia Knox and Reese Koehler, played outstanding the entire game and made play after play after play defending the Basha forwards, preventing them from scoring anymore than the one goal. 

The midfield of seniors Nev Herzog and Kateri Etsitty, Lara Henderson and Myriam Lawrence played mostly a defensive battle throughout the night, but all of them did a great job. 

Olivia Yu could not be stopped and dominated the entire night, creating much of the attack by scoring a goal and an assist, but was dangerous every time she touched the ball. Kyleigh was also a handful with her great athleticism and speed. 

This was a great team win, and we look forward to playing in the semifinals against Hamilton at 6:00 p.m. next Tuesday night. We hope all the friends and classmates of the girls will come out to support this great team. 

Go Gator Soccer, and have a great State Semifinal performance next Tuesday!

VIDEO: Xavier Goals