It was all fun and no drama for Mexico girls soccer on Monday night.
Mexico Girls Soccer Senior Night Photo Gallery
The Lady Bulldogs beat North Central Missouri Conference and district …
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It was all fun and no drama for Mexico girls soccer on Monday night.
Mexico Girls Soccer Senior Night Photo Gallery
The Lady Bulldogs beat North Central Missouri Conference and district rival Fulton 6-0 to create one final positive memory for some girls on Chris Hotop Field for Senior Night. Four of the six goals were scored by a senior — including two by Emily Moppin and one each from Claire Hudson and Addison Paden — and two were netted by Zoey Norton.
Head coach Sarah Olson has coached all six seniors for their entire careers at Mexico (7-14, 3-7 NCMC). She had Moppin, Paden and Kenley Jones for four years each, Hudson for three years and Sherlyn Mena Lopez and Lilibeth Alvarez-Zapot for two years each. Scoring the team’s second-most goals during its second shutout with such a bright atmosphere — because of Senior Night and the weather — added to an awesome night.
“We started the game really well with passing and not just kicking the ball, which we sometimes get in the habit of doing when we’re tired or feel like we’re under pressure,” Olson said when comparing Mexico's 4-1 win at Fulton (3-15, 0-9 NCMC) this season. “We really try to pass and play quickly. Last time, it felt crowded, and we were taking shots that really weren’t great shots. Quickly but not frantic.”
Mexico’s big scoring threat Moppin had another good night and enjoyed celebrating with her fellow seniors who scored meaningful goals. Hudson, for instance, played for the first time in 15 games as she has been nursing an ankle injury. Olson said she didn’t want to push the future Kirkwood Community College basketball player to play, but Hudson made sure to play after having her ankle wrapped.
Paden is at the core of the defense in the center back position but said she was playing midfielder on this special night. She took more shots at the goal until one of them touched the back of the net in the 37th minute, making it 4-0 heading into halftime. Fittingly, Paden acted like a wall when a Fulton player tried to clear the ball and then scored her first career goal.
“One of the refs looked at me and said, ‘Is that your first goal?’” Paden said. “I was like, ‘Yeah.’ he was like, ‘I can tell. You celebrated like it.’ I got excited. I found (and hugged) Emily.”
Paden said she has been playing more than 10 years and remembers playing in the Mexico YMCA recreational league and in the Fire Soccer Club. She said playing her last game on Chris Hotop Field “doesn’t feel real yet” since she will still practice on her home field but knows she will feel “very tore up” at the end of the season.
“We’ve become a very tight-knit group,” Paden said. “I always tell the incoming freshmen who are scared to play, ‘You have nothing to be scared of. This team is like family.’ We’re all best friends. There’s no drama. We all get along. I just love my teammates and my seniors. It’s going to be very hard to let go of that.”
Olson said the team has shown improvement after showing a willingness to work but has shown her countless examples that they know how to have fun and create a bright atmosphere every day.
“They’re a really fun group,” Olson said. “They enjoy the game. They enjoy just being on a team and each other. When you get a close-knit group, they lead well. When they’re fun, people look up to them. It’s hard to lose them because they’re very good athletes but also good people, too.”
It will be back to work for Mexico at 5 p.m. Wednesday at Class 1 No. 15 Canton (4-7-1) then at 5:30 p.m. Monday against Class 2 No. 10 St. Charles West (8-6-1) in the Class 2 District 3 tournament at Orchard Farm in St. Charles. Mexico has the No. 6 seed going into the matchup against the No. 3 seed. The Lady Bulldogs have their best winning percentage in 12 years as they head into a district that includes five of the top 15 teams in Class 2.
“It’s always interesting because they’ve never seen us,” Olson said about the upcoming matchup against St. Charles West. “We haven’t seen them. You just go and play your hardest.”