WASHINGTON 鈥� Many people think of Thanksgiving as the reason to go home, to cook and eat and relax with family. All the way back before the season began, the Georgetown women鈥檚 soccer team had something else in mind for this Turkey Day.
鈥淥ne of our goals at the beginning of the year was always to spend Thanksgiving together,鈥� said senior forward and leading goal-scorer Caitlin Farrell.
The way the soccer calendar unfolds, playing that deep into November means playing for the chance to go to the College Cup, NCAA soccer鈥檚 Final Four, a destination the Hoyas have reached just once, two years ago.
鈥淭his is my third fall in D.C. and I鈥檝e been fortunate enough to spend two Thanksgivings with the team,鈥� said senior goalkeeper Arielle Shechtman. 鈥淚t鈥檚 one of the coolest parts. You鈥檙e not thinking about not going home 鈥� you鈥檙e thinking about being with your second family.鈥�
The Hoyas have earned the chance to do just that thanks to a season of perseverance that sees them peaking at just the right moment. A 16-0-3 regular season earned them a No. 1 seed and the chance to play at home in the NCAA Tournament. After trailing Central Connecticut State 1-0 at the half in their opening round game, the Hoyas haven鈥檛 been behind since. They beat the Blue Devils 3-1, Washington State 1-0, then netted four goals against 4-seed Duke, which hadn鈥檛 allowed either of its previous opponents to score in a 4-1 victory.
That sets up Saturday鈥檚 noon game at Shaw Field on campus against 2-seed Baylor with a trip to the College Cup on the line.
After netting the opening tally against Duke last week, Farrell is tied for third in the nation in scoring with 18 goals and is the most prolific scorer remaining in the tournament. She also ranks in the top 10 in the country in shots on goal per game (2.43), providing a constant threat around the net.
鈥淪coring goals is great, but someone鈥檚 giving me that assist,鈥� she said. 鈥淓veryone鈥檚 been putting me in those positions where I just have to tap it in.鈥�
Schechtman, meanwhile, leads the nation in with shutouts in 14 of her 21 starts and is second in goals against average (. 322) and save percentage (. 913). She sees that as a byproduct of everything coming together between all the lines, from the defense up to the forwards.
鈥淵es, it鈥檚 great to have those stats, those numbers, to build on them from last year, years prior. But it truly is the team just finding their form,鈥� she said. 鈥淓ven looking at the beginning of the season to now, I think that everybody鈥檚 kind of found their rhythm and is used to playing with one another.鈥�
If Georgetown wins Saturday, they鈥檒l travel to Cary, North Carolina, just down the road from last year鈥檚 first-round tournament exit, a 0-0, penalty kick loss at Wake Forest. But there鈥檚 no wariness when talking about where the team has come up short in the past, only the hope for redemption and a deeper run right now.
After all, the team has already had a litany of obstacles dropped in front of them this year. They had a game earlier this year moved to a turf field. Their 鈥渉ome鈥� game vs. George Mason ended up being played AT George Mason. Even their second-round tournament game against Washington State was pushed to George Washington鈥檚 campus because of weather.
That鈥檚 only served to strengthen their bond, though. One of their team mantras is 2-7, as in the importance of all 27 members of the team working together, pushing each other to be their best, no matter what comes.
鈥淲e鈥檝e had to deal with a lot of things being thrown our way,鈥� said Farrell. 鈥淚 think that鈥檚 what鈥檚 been great this year, is that we鈥檝e all come together 鈥� all 2-7 of us have come together 鈥� to just deal with it, move past it, and do everything we can to just play the game of soccer.鈥�
All 2-7 of them will get to enjoy the Thanksgiving they鈥檝e been hoping for all season together this weekend, and get the chance to go further than the program has ever gone before.
