Inside Southern Boone girls soccer season of grit and solidarity

Monday night was an anomaly for Southern Boone’s (17-6) girls soccer team.

Aubrie Gonella’s goal in the second half gave Osage (9-7) a 1-0 lead over the Eagles, which held steady the rest of the contest. It gave Southern Boone its first loss in seven games dating back to April 13.

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Despite the setback, Southern Boone head coach Wade Vandelicht reflected on the loss and remained optimistic moving forward.

“Soccer is a humbling sport. I thought we had the better play, but there were some things that we didn’t do,” Vandelicht said. “We didn’t make the most of our opportunities, and hopefully that just puts a spark under us a little bit so we can win when it matters.”

For the seventh straight season, Southern Boone has won 17 games. Vandelicht has been the head coach for six of those seasons. What sets this team apart from past teams? A level of cohesion and unity has put together another successful season for the Eagles.

“We’ve played together most of the time,” Vandelicht said. “I’ve told them the whole year, we haven’t had quite as much skill as we’ve had in the past, but the way that they’ve played together and embraced kind of the system and stuff, they’ve found ways to win, so we just need to keep that going.”

The togetherness and selflessness have translated into a remarkable defensive stretch for Southern Boone. This season, the Eagles have shut out opponents in 16 of their 23 contests. Osage’s goal on Monday was the first allowed by the team since their 7-0 loss to Parkway Central (12-7-1). In between that stretch, they’ve outscored teams 33-0.

“Our defense has just really been solid as far as their shape and being able to read balls in and being able to clear things out and just communication overall,” Vandelicht said. “I think when you put that with a good keeper, you tend not to let people score, and you get those shutouts.”

The senior goalkeeper is Claire Pickett, a stalwart presence between the posts, standing as a symbol of the team’s success.

“She’s had good defenses in front of her but this year we’ve gone into penalty kicks three times, and she’s made big saves in those,” Vandelicht said. “And I think when you have somebody back there that’s solid that can keep you in games, sometimes when you are maybe not the better team it means a lot and a keeper can make a big difference and she’s definitely done that.”

Following a 4-0 victory over Fatima on April 9, Pickett moved into second all-time in Southern Boone girls soccer history in career shutouts with 35. This trails just Katy Andrews, who put up 57 in her four-year career.

“It literally means the world to me. I just cannot believe it,” said Pickett on climbing the leaderboards. “I just think it’s amazing that I have the opportunity to even play that. I didn’t used to play goalie when I was in middle school and just getting that record it’s just crazy. I’m really happy for the coaches that have trained me to get here.”

Yet, for Pickett, what goes beyond her personal achievements are the bonds she forged with her teammates over her four-year career.

“Everyone’s connection this year is surreal,” Pickett said. “Everyone enjoys being around each other and it’s more than a team, it's the friendships that we’ve made. I’ve never had these types of connections with anyone on any team I’ve played on.”

Southern Boone possesses a big freshmen class, but the senior group Pickett, Abigail Beighler, Jessica Brookshire, Josephine Uhrig, and Natalie Bennett have embraced that this is their last ride together and have taken the first-year students under their wing as leaders.

The Eagles have one more game before districts begin. Southern Boone will play Stover with Cole Camp (7-8) on Thursday at 5 p.m. It will begin Class 2, District 4 play against St. James (3-13) on May 13 in Jefferson City. Staying disciplined is key to a deep postseason run.

“Execution or not execution, it only takes one play in soccer,” Vandelicht said. “We tell them all the time it only takes that one goal to win a game and when you put your opportunity in or you don’t clear out an opportunity that they get, that could be the one thing that puts you through or not.”

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Inside Southern Boone girls soccer season of grit and solidarity