From wildly cheering on their teammates to slowly dying down in complete silence. This is how freshman Hana Sahaki, a center forward, described their last playoff game for girls’ soccer.
“They were good; we scored first, and then in the last five minutes, they scored a goal, so we were tied. And then we had to go to penalties,” said freshman Hana Sahaki. “There’s honestly not much we could have done after that.”
This was how the season ended for an otherwise amazing season for Skyline girls’ soccer. The game against Kipp King in the playoff semifinals was only the second loss of the Titans’ season.
An undeniable highlight for the girls’ soccer team was an impressive overall regular-season record of 12-1-1 —their only loss was against rival team Oakland Tech.
While reminiscing about their semifinal game, senior captain Sheyla Ixtabalan said, “I saw the hard work my teammates were putting in and pushing to their limits.”
“We were supposed to win that game, go on to finals, and win that too, but it didn’t happen.”
Despite the loss, assistant coach Melissa Hyde said, “I hope that we can retain our players and keep building on the path that has been developed over the last several years.”
Coach Melissa praised both the varsity and junior varsity teams for having exceptional student-athletes.
Girls’ soccer season ended for the Titans on Feb. 26, marking the end of Coach Emilio Navarro-Perez’s time at Skyline from 2022 to 2026. Before the season started, Coach Emilio announced that this was his last year coaching for the Skyline girls’ soccer team, motivating the team to push their limits not only for themselves but also for Coach Emilio as well.
Coach Emilio said he will coach men’s soccer at Mendocino College, describing the transition as “embarking on a greater journey and opportunity within soccer.”
“Sometimes you notice someone’s impact based on their presence and others based on their absence. For my girls, I think it will hit them when I am no longer on the sidelines or at practice,” said Coach Emilio.
