The women’s soccer team’s 2013 season came to an end with a double-overtime 1-0 loss to Wheaton College (Ill.) on Friday. The win advanced Wheaton to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Division III Tournament. With the end of this season came the end of seven Emory seniors’ memorable collegiate soccer careers.

The game had remained scoreless until the 102nd minute of play, when Wheaton defender Alexa Sharkey took a hard shot from 20 yards out at the far post. Emory sophomore goalkeeper Liz Arnold dove for the ball, and it hit off the post, then off the back of her head and bounced into the goal.

“It was kind of unlucky, but I would have rather lost in overtime than in penalty kicks,” Arnold said.

The game was intense every second of play.

“It was all really exciting,” Emory senior and captain Kelly Costopoulos said.

Despite not starting the game, Emory freshman forward Emily Matis led the team in shots with four.

“I was really excited for this game,” Matis said. “I knew that when you come off the bench, you have to play well to stay in.”

Arnold made a career-high seven saves, helping the Eagles keep the scoreboard clean for so long.

“Our defense played really well, and our goalkeeper made a couple of fantastic saves,” Costopoulos said.

Arnold’s mindset in the game helped her performance.

“I knew I had to come up big,” she said. “I got lucky on some. Wheaton is very good.”

Both teams appeared to have the upper hand at different points in the game. Emory seemed to dominate the first half, Wheaton the second, Emory the first overtime period and Wheaton the second.

“When we dominated, we possessed the ball more,” Matis said. “When they were, they interfered with our passes more.”

Arnold praised the opponent’s well-roundedness on offense.

“They had a very good offense,” she said. “Every player was an athlete and very skilled. There weren’t any weak links, just like on our team. I think that’s why it was so close.”

The seven graduating seniors and the rest of the team have every right to be proud of their 16-4-1 season. Costopoulos, one of the team’s most valuable players, had hoped to go further in the tournament.

“I don’t think we’re ever satisfied,” she said. “Unless you win a national championship, you end with a loss, which is tough.”

Matis echoed her sentiments.

“Everyone can be proud of the season we had, but all of us really wanted to win the national championship because they came so close last year [second place],” she said.

Those graduating will undeniably be missed by their teammates, but they will live on at Emory through those they led and taught.

“They put Emory soccer on the map,” Arnold said. “Without them, I don’t know where we would be.”

They were everything one expects from leaders, accepting every player from the start. And Emory soccer will likewise live on through the seniors.

“These past four years were such a great experience,” Cosotpoulos said. “I think of my teammates more as family than friends. We go through all the ups and downs together, have each other’s backs. It’s a bond unparalleled to anything I’ve ever experienced and I wouldn’t change a thing.”

If there was one force driving the underclassmen this season, it was a hope to win a National Championship for their leaders.

“When [Wheaton] scored, it was really heartbreaking for the seniors,” Matis said. “It almost felt like we were disappointing them.”

Costopoulos lamented the fleetingness of the moment.

“It’s tough because it was one and done for the season and for a lot of our careers,” she said.

Nonetheless, she is confident that her teammates will come out strong again next year.

“Every single one of us will have to step up, especially after losing so many leaders,” Arnold said. “We had a lot of freshmen recruits come in, so it’s going to be really important to set the tone of Emory soccer.”

Even after Costopoulos and the other seniors have graduated, that driving force will remain.

“Hopefully we’ll continue their legacy and win a national championship,” Arnold said.

Matis echoed her goalkeeper’s sentiments.

“We want them to know we really look up to them and they were the heart of the team,” she said. “We hope we can win the next one for them. We love them.”

– By Zak Hudak 

Photo courtesy of Emory Athletics

+ posts

The Emory Wheel was founded in 1919 and is currently the only independent, student-run newspaper of Emory University. The Wheel publishes weekly on Wednesdays during the academic year, except during University holidays and scheduled publication intermissions.

The Wheel is financially and editorially independent from the University. All of its content is generated by the Wheel’s more than 100 student staff members and contributing writers, and its printing costs are covered by profits from self-generated advertising sales.