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The Pasadena City College (PCC) women’s soccer team has come a long way since their 6-0 start. Although there were some tough obstacles and competition, the team ended their year with positive lessons.

The start of a 6-0 season set off the team to great expectations. Yet, during the East Los Angeles College (ELAC) game on the evening of Oct. 3, the first SCC North game for the Lancers ended in a 1-1 draw.

Creating risky moves during this game, coach Reggie Rivas made the switch to put Emily Matthiesen from right back to left wing.

“Matthiesen, who normally is our left wing, is now our right back because of our injuries. We need more offense, so we made that switch,” he stated after the game.

Assistant coach Heidi Strauss said that although Lily Urumieh was injured, both Matthiesen and Yulissa Macias stepped in for their switched positions with great outcomes.

“Emily is a talented, versatile player who has played multiple positions for us over her career here,” Strauss said. “I don’t think a position change for her was anything different than [what] we’ve done in the past. She has the ability to play anywhere she is needed…”

Strauss added, “[Urumieh] is a very good goalkeeper and unfortunately she was injured. [Macias] stepped into a situation that can be very difficult, but Yulissa did a great job for us. We were very fortunate to have her, not only for her skills as a goalkeeper, but on the field as well. She came up big time and scored a huge game winner for us against Mt. SAC. The team, Lily included, was very supportive of Yuli.”

After their 1-1 draw with ELAC, the Lancers won a 1-0 one sided game against Mt. SAC, where Maria De La Cruz was the all star player.

Strauss said De La Cruz has surprising potential.

“Maria was a great surprise for us,” she said. “She was another player who was able to help us out in multiple positions and really held her own.”

Strauss knows that the team players always give their full potential on and off the field during games, and describes the Nov. 7 win vs. Mt. SAC as successful.

“The team played with a lot of heart in these games,” she said. “They fought hard and believed in themselves.”

The women’s soccer team ended the season and their hopes of moving on to playoffs after the loss to Rio Hondo, in a 4-0 game. Coach Rivas has stated in previous games that Rio Hondo is a great team to compete with.

“They’re one of the best teams in the state, if not the best team, so it was good to compete with them,” he said.

Matthiesen’s first thoughts after the 4-0 loss with Rio Hondo were those moves that needed corrections.

“I think the biggest issue with finding the goal was that we weren’t talking as much as we could,” she said.

Strauss knows that the team has come a long way and that although losing to Rio Hondo 4-0 was tough, she doesn’t define it as devastating.

“So, while some will look at that score and think ‘devastating,’ I say we had a really good season, one where we broke a long standing record and had the best start in PCC women’s soccer history,” she said.

With a record of 10-7-3, the team finished tied for third in a very dominant SCC North.

“I’m proud of our team and our sophomores specifically. This group, our sophomores, are going to be missed, not only for their skills on the field, but because they are just a cool group of young women,” Strauss said.

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