Hamber Girls’ Soccer Team Wins City Championships

The Girls’ Soccer team poses after their City Championship victory against John Oliver | Photo Credit: Jesse Ingram

The Hamber Girls’ Soccer team won the City Championships on May 25. Led by Ms. J. Polukoshko (English), the Soccer team played an undefeated season that culminated in a grueling final match against John Oliver Secondary.

“The finals were wild,” said Ms. Polukoshko. “The score was tied at the end of full time, then we had to go into two overtime sessions, and then we had to go into penalty kick shootouts for the win.” 

Winning the City Championship was the result of hours of hard work and many nail-biting moments. “Some of the games were really close,” shared Ashly Warren (9), a member of the team. The team played a tough semi-final against Point Grey which was tied at halftime before Hamber scored in the second half, leading them to victory.

“Going into the semi-finals and quarter-finals, we were pretty nervous,” said Arlyn Gilmour (11). The team played in all kinds of weather and against many difficult opponents to get to the finals.

Hamber’s Girls’ Soccer team has had a successful past few years. They have a history of advancing to the finals and winning City Championships, and this season continues that trend.

“A few years ago, we didn’t even have a team because we didn’t have sports for a few seasons,” explained Ms. Polukoshko. “Being able to come back and being able to play is very exciting.”

“It was such a good feeling to win with our whole team,” said Bryony Prior (9). “Some of us had never played together before, and we had a bunch of new coaches, but in the end it worked out.”

Ms. Polukoshko believes that the most important outcome of the season is the team’s growing sense of community. “Having people working together for a common goal, […] experiencing athletics and teamwork, that for me is the greatest reward.”