Winning 1-0 in a matchup against Treasure Coast High School, Jupiter High’s girls soccer team advances to the state competition for the first time in school history. 

Despite losing in the state semifinals against Cypress Bay High School, players on the team are proud of their accomplishment of winning the regional games for the first time ever, leading them to an overall record of 19-2-3.

“Winning regionals means so much to my team and I. We put a ton of effort into every single practice and it was nice to finally get that reward. It also meant so much more because it was against one of our biggest rivals, Treasure Coast,” Reese Dougherty, junior midfielder, said.

Gianna Granda, senior captain, midfielder and forward, has played soccer for the past 13 years and made it on the varsity team as a freshman. 

“Our main goal was to win districts and make it to regionals so we wound up getting much more than what we asked for. It was very rewarding,” Granda said. 

Prior to the regional game against Treasure Coast, the team worked hard to stay focused with the goal of winning and advancing to states. 

“We did have a long conversation about how we’ve never been able to get to states and that we need to shift our focus,” Granda said. 

Kody Drake, girls head coach, has been coaching Oliver and Granda, among others on the team, since early elementary school.

“We kind of all grew up together so our chemistry is really fun and I think that’s a big part of [our success],” Granda said.

Much of the team’s success was also credited by the players to Drake.

“[Drake’s] first year was my freshman year, he really grew with this team, and we definitely couldn’t have done it without him. He taught us things that I don’t think many coaches are doing. He was very flexible and was never too strict, never too hard on us,” Granda said.

With Drake leading the team, the regionals game was energetic and competitive, with a crowd of around 1,200 attendants.

“The regional game atmosphere was great. It was one of the largest crowds I had ever seen at a girls high school soccer game,” Dougherty said. 

The game was not only exciting to the players, but to those watching it as well, allowing the audience to see the girl’s playing in a higher level game. 

“After the game, I had goosebumps because it was such a good ending and such a good game,” Gabby Palomba, senior, said. 

The team celebrated their regional victory with a team dinner at Ale house. The school then surprised the team with a send-off before leaving for the state championship. 

“The school send-off to states was definitely a one of a kind experience. It was super cool to have so many people including some of the dance team and band to come out and support us,” Dougherty said. 

With this achievement, the team is expecting to be progressing further in future years.

“I think our team is fully capable of going on to win regionals and even states next year,” Dougherty said.