Federal Way High School hasn’t had much success on the soccer pitch this season — the Eagles were just 2-10 before entering a game against Todd Beamer High School.
The Titans were one of the two teams that the Eagles had beaten so far this season in a 4-1 back on Sept. 24.
On Oct. 21, the Eagles defeated Todd Beamer, 2-1 ,at Federal Way Memorial Field. For first year manager Sean Davis, the Eagles are just focused on one game at a time despite the results coming the way of the Eagles.
“We are competing to get better every single time … Can we get better, what can we do that is in our control. As long as we are putting forth that effort and competing, we can keep our heads up. That has been the message from day one,” said Davis.
“The fact that we are in the last week of the season and still moving forward, I am very proud of that,” he added.
Todd Beamer actually came out playing really solid soccer, and sophomore Karen Estrada hit a banger into the top left corner of the goal for an early Todd Beamer lead.
“The physicality was definitely up there. Our girls started to adjust as time went on,” Davis said.
Scoring goals has been a problem for the Titans as their goals scored is just 0.6 this season, which is tied for second lowest in the entire NPSL with Mount Rainier and Kent-Meridian.
But Estrada’s goal was high quality and provided a spark that put Federal Way on its heels. Seemingly as a result, Federal Way’s Ashlynn Snyder started making more runs to threaten the Titan backline.
“The talent speaks for herself. She is more than willing to help her teammates around. She has a vast amount of experience in her young age. She sets the tone and sets the example and makes those around you better. To me, that is always the qualities of the really good ones,” Davis said.
Snyder eventually tied the game on a free kick from 40 yards out from goal. She has been instrumental for Davis in his first season, and the Eagles in general.
“I feel we have worked really well together. Her bringing her ideas and thoughts and giving the players the confidence to share their voice and experiences,” said Davis.
The two sides went into halftime at 1-1, but the Eagles had carried momentum from the first half to the second.
“They just showed resiliency. It was their senior night, so they had extra motivation and they tied at 1-1 before halftime. But our girls stepped it up in the second half,” Davis said.
As the clock ticked, Federal Way was searching for the go-ahead goal and eventually found it. Freshman Jasmine Cuevas Escamilla buried a shot from just outside the six-yard box in the 73rd minute of the game.
It has been a big of a struggle for the Eagles this year just to find some consistency on the field healthwise. Injuries have plagued the Eagles, causing a revolving door of lineups and rotations, but as the season went on, Davis’s side has adapted.
“We’re dealing with injuries. Our girls have been figuring out the lineup we have and how we can gel moving forward because it has been a game-by-game basis,” Davis said.