Barbara Lawlor, Nederland.  It was a great end to a building sIt was a great end to a building season. The Nederland High School girls' soccer team beat Longmont Christian Wednesday, May 3, 2017 in their last game of the season. The game was played on the Nederland home field in front of home town fans who showed up to cheer on the Panther girls.

The final score was 6-1 and the home team had reason to celebrate. The Panthers showed unity, made some intelligent passes and moved in on the Longmont players, capturing the ball time after time. Nederland dominated both halves, bombarding the Longmont goalkeeper.

At the beginning of the game, Karen Sorokach socked the ball past the keeper on a penalty kick, a straight line drive into the goal.

Ned defense did a great job of keeping the ball in Longmont territory and Panther goalkeeper Brieanna Sineni stopped the balls that managed to get to her.

During halftime, the Nederland seniors and their parents were honored. Emily Curcio, Emily Kassera, Chloe Lindstom, Ivie Silva, and Brieanna Sineni presented their parents with flowers to thank them for their ongoing support for the past four years.

In the second half, the Ned girls used the emotional momentum to attack the Longmont goal relentlessly. The Longmont offense grabbed a goal which was answered shortly by Sorokach lobbing a perfect shot over the goalie to give the Panthers a 2-1 edge.

After a down field surge, Ivie Silva sent a hard kick across the goal which was put into the goal by Anna Hastings. The next score was made by Karen Sorokach who booted the ball for a long, fast kick past the goalkeeper, making the score 4-1.

Senior Brieanna Sineni saw her door open and kicked a line drive into the goal. Swooping down on the Longmont goalkeeper, the Ned girls’ offense had become almost unstoppable. Anna Neher made a perfect pass to senior Chloe Lindstrom who accomplished the 6-1 goal in her last game on the Nederland field.

It was a fitting win for a team that came a long way and for the girls who will carry that winning feeling into the next season.

(Originally published in the May 11, 2017 print edition of  The Mountain-Ear.)