An Incredible Game

Battling through a match that ended with no available subs for the mustangs, the Millbrook boys thirds soccer team delivered a performance that was equal parts exciting and inspiring. Scoring his first goal of the season, Leo Hou found the back of the net in the first half, and elicited a wild roar from the bench. That tied the game at 1. Our opponent put another goal away before the half, but the Millbrook team came to the sideline with belief in their ability to come back. I started my halftime speech by saying, "I think y'all are still in this game and, by the way, Leo scored." The team erupted in a loud, joyful cheer. I went on to point out the many ways the team had demonstrated growth as players: Trey Malmgren calling for a back pass in space and then one-touching a pass on the ground to the player on the other corner of a triangle, Ray Kim showing patience with the ball and luring a defender off his player before passing it to the corner, and Charley Li looking up to assess his options between dribbles. This was just a fraction of the growth we observed. I ended by saying we could also applaud for future Andrew Moawad, who I predicted would score his first goal of the season in the second half. When "Mo" did just that to tie the game up, the team ran him off the field in excitement. I'll be bragging about that prediction for the rest of my career.

We are grateful to the Frederick Gunn players, who competed with class and heart, and to their coaches for their good sportsmanship and for sharing a bit of humor before the game.