The girls soccer team visited Principia High School to play in the St. Louis tournament.

The girls soccer team traveled to St. Louis to compete in a tournament, and won both of their games. After weeks of hard work but very few games played, this tournament was an exciting opportunity for the team.

After starting their practices on the last day of February, the girls soccer team has continued to train and grow together as a team. The team has since assigned positions to each member, made a “reserve team,” similar to junior varsity, and started to practice every day after school.

The captains this year, Maddie Bauman ‘22 and Bella Kateusz ‘23, definitely helped strengthen the bond of the team. Connecting within the team has been a priority this year, demonstrated by the extra efforts made to gather the team and bond outside of the games and practices.

Every year the girls team attends a tournament in St. Louis, where they play 2-3 games. A Barstow soccer tradition, this tournament is always highly anticipated by the players as an opportunity to improve their game and bond as a team. This year, the St. Louis tournament took place immediately after spring break when the girls team had only played one game. Coach Huppe encouraged the girls to view these games as preseason practice, especially since the teams they played already had much more experience this season. Despite the lack of experience, the team played exceptionally well.

For all of the positions on the field like midfield and offense, Coach Scott Huppe played to the girls’ strengths and encouraged the team to work cohesively throughout the field

Early Friday morning the girls team departed for St. Louis. After a four hour bus ride, they ate a quick lunch, then immediately went to a soccer complex to warm up after the long trip. A quick pit stop at the hotel was made to change into uniforms and deposit their things, and then they were off to play their first game. On Friday afternoon, the team played Crossroads High School, winning 2-1, the team’s first win.

On Saturday morning, the Lady Knights played Principia High School, with a comfortable 3-1 victory. The girls then loaded onto the bus and began their trip home.

Coach Huppe coaches both the girls and boys soccer team with his own experience playing soccer and as a gym teacher at Barstow. His advice has always been welcomed by players, but this tournament exemplified his steadfastness to his role as coach. By adhering to Huppe’s system and through his constant support on the field, the girls were able to work the field well and play their best games.

This was demonstrated before the second game at St. Louis, where Bauman observed that Coach Huppe kept the team on track. In fact, she asserted that Coach Huppe may have made their performance, which came out with a win.

Both Bauman and Kateusz are encouraged by the wins at Principia. Bauman says that the importance of her role comes from, “empowering each other, being inclusive and cheering each other on.”

“Against Principia we had three starters who weren’t there, but it was probably the best work we’ve done,” said Bauman ‘22. “We really played cohesively, we tightened up and we really started to see what happens when you start stringing those passes together and play a little bit more relaxed.”

Perhaps most importantly, the girls came together as teammates and friends during the tournament. Resoundingly, the relationships between the team members, especially lower and upper classmen became stronger.

Late night talks, lunchtime laughs, and pre-game goof offs were all a common occurrence at the tournament, strengthening the friendship between the players. Additionally, the girls came up with the term ‘STL BBL’ to describe their time in St. Louis. The acronym, standing for St. Louis Bright Barstow Ladies, is just one example of how the team continues to laugh together, a bond demonstrated in their game play.

“We started the chant ‘STL BBL’ anytime something funny or cool happened, and now whenever we say it we’re reminded of the tournament,” said Bauman ‘22.

As the soccer team continues to play more games, we will see the influence that their camaraderie has had on and off the field. We are excited to see just how far they will go this season!