Jasmine appeared beside her then gave her a gentle jab with her elbow.Īmber looked to the visitor’s sideline and spotted Momma. She blocked the bad feelings from her mind, following Coach Penny and the team to the podium. The coach’s words put a damper on her joy. Coach Peterson at Julian High will be happy to have you.” The red faced round man extended his hand. The last person in line was the opposing team’s coach. Her response to the opposing team members varied based on her feeling some a simple high five, others a handshake, and a few a heartfelt hug. Now line up so we can shake hands with our worthy opponents.” You’re on the verge of unsportsmanlike conduct. Coach Penny walked up to them shaking her head while trying to suppress a grin. The team set them down and they broke into a line dance they’d practiced in secret for weeks. The two of them were lifted in the air as the team chanted. Jasmine was about to fire back when their teammates overwhelmed them. “I know you didn’t just insult me,” Jasmine said in mock anger. She let go and Jasmine dropped to her feet. “You know you ain’t no petite girl,” Amber shouted. She shook her fist in the air as Amber struggled to hold her up. Jasmine ran at Amber then leaped into her arms. They’d won the championship there was no reason for holding back. The team rushed the field, for once ignoring Coach Penny’s advice of cool decorum after a victory. When the time ran out the score read 4 – 2, the Silverbacks fans leaping to their feet cheering and waving their silver and black pom-poms. Extra time was added because of penalties but the game was all but over. The Silverback defense turned back a couple of spirited attacks by the opposing team and Amber and Jasmine scored three more goals. The rest of the match was a lesson of keep away. The ball left her foot like a pitcher’s fastball, speeding by the diving goalie then into the net. Jasmine, her back turned to the goal, trapped the ball on her left foot then spun about. Amber took a deep breath then executed a perfect bicycle kick, sending the ball back to Jasmine as the crowd gasped and roared. She watched Jasmine jump, avoiding a vicious sliding tackle then with the flip of her right foot send the ball streaking toward Amber. Amber ran as fast as she could, knowing Jasmine’s good fortune wouldn’t last. Her friend quickly displayed the dribbling skills she was known and feared for, dancing her way through the opposing team. She kicked it forward in a looping arc, the ball falling right before Jasmine. Amber waited until she attempted to pass the ball across the field then intercepted it. Jasmine let the Clearwater Jaguar forward take the ball. Amber nodded at Jasmine as she trotted behind them. Jasmine and the opposing forwards rushed the ball. ![]() The referee blew the whistle to begin the second half. ![]() The team depended on her to size up their opponents and give advice on strategy. She had an instinct, Coach Penny said, to read a player’s mind. Amber, while not as good as Jasmine, was a skilled passer and a perfect judge of the opposing players. Jasmine was a soccer prodigy, the daughter of two soccer standouts, her Brazilian father and Jamaican mother and a recent transfer. Their sudden success was mainly due to Amber and Jasmine. The cloudless sky and crisp air day set the stage for what the Silverbacks hoped would be their victory to claim. ![]() Cars, minivans and trucks packed the parking lot of Silverback Stadium, an anomaly for a girls’ middle school soccer game. “Get focused! Let’s take this home!”įor the first time since the girls’ soccer program began the Wayne Elementary Silverbacks were on the verge of their first championship. Her hand went absently to Grandma’s necklace, the namesake jewels cool against her slender neck, their touch calming her mind. The other pressures of her life faded as soon as the referee blew the whistle starting the game. She didn’t have to care how her hair looked, if her nails were the right color or if she wore the right perfume. On the field she didn’t have to be pretty or charming or graceful. There were only her teammates and the game, a challenge she was more than up to. She grinned and Jasmine threw up a peace sign. Her brown face glistened with sweat as she glanced at her companion forward and best friend, Jasmine Santos. Amber Robinson bounced on the balls of her feet while the referee placed the ball on center field.
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