SO GOOD: Princeton Day School girls’ soccer player Sophia Vriesendorp, right, controls the ball in a game earlier this season. Last Thursday, junior midfielder Vriesendorp scored the lone goal as PDS edged Notre Dame 1-0. The Panthers, who improved to 13-0 with the win, host Allentown on October 16 and play at Newark Academy on October 18. (Photo by Frank Jacobs III)
By Bill Alden
Having reeled off 12 straight wins to start the season, the Princeton Day School girls’ soccer team found itself knotted in a scoreless draw at Notre Dame late in the second half last Thursday.
PDS junior midfielder Sophia Vriesendorp was confident that the Panthers would eventually come through in the tense contest.
“We knew that we were really in for a hard game,” said Vriesendorp. “Together we all have a collective passion for soccer. We know that if we work hard and we support each other, we are going to find a way to get it into the box and put it in the back of the net.”
With 7:04 left in regulation, it was Vriesendorp who found the back of the net as she blasted a corner kick from Mackenzie Brodel into the top corner of the goal.
“I was thinking like ‘OK, we are going to get the next play,’” said Vriesendorp. “I am really happy that Jess [Dieng] called me off the corner and Mac put a great ball in the box. We were able to get on the end of it and finish.”
While the Panthers had trouble finishing against the Irish despite dominating possession for stretches of the game, they kept their cool.
“It can seem frustrating but we keep our communication always positive and we are always uplifting each other,” said Vriesendorp. “Like coach Kelly [Severini] likes to say, it is calling each other up, not calling each other out. We are bringing each other up to our level of play and the standard that we hold for each other. I think that helps us.”
Living up to that standard has been key to the 13-0 start.
“It is an unreal feeling, I am going to just keep riding it out,” said Vriesendorp. “We have such a talented group of players. Everybody is willing to put 110 percent effort out as soon as they step on the field. We have a lot of seniors and they are really great leaders and mentors to all of our talented underclassmen. We are willing to play for the person next to you.”
Vriesendorp has stepped up recently, tallying three goals and two assists in the last five games.
“This is my junior season and I know I only have a few more years left of this, so it is leaving it all out in the field,” said Vriesendorp, who now has five goals and a team-high six assists on the season. “I think this team is also inspiring me.”
PDS head coach Chris Pettit has been inspired by his squad’s will to win this fall.
“They find a way and sometimes it was ugly, sometimes it is gritty, and sometimes it is a whole host of other things,” said Pettit. “They find a way and that is what we just spoke about. The seniors chose the team motto this year and it is play for the person next to them. If somebody makes a mistake or somebody is not having their best game, somebody else is going to step up.”
In the early stages of the contest, the Panthers displayed their game as they controlled play with deft passing and some sharp buildup.
“I think the first 20 minutes that is what we are all about,” said Pettit. “We had people on attack, we played to feet. It is hard against teams like this. These guys are good. They play fast, they play direct so it is contrasting styles and it is hard for us sometimes to not fall into that style.”
In the second half as the game featured some hectic end-to-end play, PDS adjusted its approach.
“We changed formation about 25 minutes into the second half because I felt like it turned into more their style of game,” said Pettit. “It felt like it was a bit what I would call a basketball game. It was a bit too back-and-forth for us. We are not good at that. We don’t train that way, so we changed formation to get back to that possession. I felt in spells we looked more dangerous and we got more people further forward.”
Vriesendorp has certainly been dangerous this fall.
“Today was a sweet, sweet goal; it was one of those as soon as it left her foot you knew that was going to find the top corner,” said Pettit. “It was a great goal. She has been huge. I think she has got six assists now and probably five or six goals. It is not even just those stats. She is playing key minutes and just links our play so well. She and Jules [Hartman] have really been the backbone of everything that we have done.”
The Panther defense got it done as it stifled Notre Dame.
“Mae [Braswell] did really well, they played through and she did a nice job positioning to make the play,” said Pettit of his sophomore goalie.
“I thought the whole back line did a really nice job of squeezing the play up and leave the spacing behind. They had a couple of shots from long range and then they had the one back pass that we undercut. Other than that, I don’t think we really looked like conceding. Defensively, it was very solid. We have been improving in that area as the season has gone on.”
After having gone 8-9-1 in 2024, PDS has shown a lot of improvement this fall.
“These guys deserve huge credit because it has been different,” said Pettit. “Last year we had a lot of the same players and we couldn’t get it right mentally on and off the field. I think this year we had a lot of talk in the summer and early season about what it was going to take to pull that next person up and go from there. That has been huge. The girls have all bought into it. If they didn’t, you have last year. When they do, you have this year.”
With PDS hosting Allentown on October 16 in a key Colonial Valley Conference (CVC) showdown and playing at Newark Academy on October 18, Pettit believes pulling out the win over Notre Dame was a good sign.
“It is a good test for how we handle it when things don’t go our way,” said Pettit. “We also need to be able to deal with the nerves coming into the game and the big pressure moments. When things might not be going your way, how are you going to react to those?”
Vriesendorp, for her part, is determined to stay in the moment.
“It is just focus on the next game and what lies ahead one step at a time,” said Vriesendorp. “I think this is a really good test and we rose to the occasion and the challenge. It is great to see.”