Coming off a 7-0 home opener win vs. Rappahannock, the girls varsity soccer team wanted to continue the momentum at Fauquier on March 20. After 80 minutes that saw only one goal, they did just that with a 1-0 win that improved their record to 2-1.

The majority of the first half was played in the middle third of the field, with both teams having relatively few opportunities in the box. The back four, made up of sophomores Amira Lucas and Sophie Sallah, junior Maddie Scott and senior Jennifer Nutter,  pressed up the field to provide drop options, but the half still went scoreless.

To start the second half, head coach Ray Ellington switched the formation from a 4-3-3 to a 3-4-3, moving Nutter into the holding midfielder position to defend if pressured. Five minutes in, senior captain Mikaela O’Fallon took a direct kick after being fouled, but Fauquier’s defense was able to take the ball back up the field. With 31 minutes on the clock, freshman Olivia King and junior Francheska Fontanez-Gonzalez connected and crossed the ball to senior Esmeralda Ruiz-Jimenez, who placed a high ball in the back of the net to put the Streaks up 1-0.

A yellow card for a Fauquier forward was quickly followed by a yellow card to Fontanez-Gonzalez for aggressive play, giving the Falcons an indirect kick. With a kick nearly to the top of the 18, Harrisonburg’s defensive line outran the opposing forwards, passing the ball back to sophomore goalkeeper Amelia Mitchell, who cleared it up the field. For the remainder of the game, the Streaks kept the ball in their offensive third, allowing Mitchell to face little more pressure.

The Streaks will face Salem on March 22 in Salem for their final non-district match before beginning district play the following week.