“We’re doing that,” Eli says, a hint of defensiveness in his tone. “Or trying.”
“Try harder,” I say sternly. There is no magic button right now. Frustration courses through me, but then I think of Lacey, how patient and upbeat she is with her advice. I glance around at my guys. They want this as badly as I do, and they’re looking to me to be that voice of reason and positivity. “Wecando this. One play at a time. We work together, look for openings, communicate, and fight like hell on defense. We’re the better team and now is our chance to prove that, so let’s fucking do it.”
I can see their expressions shift from defeated to determined.
“You heard the captain. Let’s fucking do this,” Rowan says.
Everyone nods, and we jog off to our spots with renewed energy. I get the ball on the next throw-in and carry it down the field, scanning my teammates as they set up for the play.
Mountainview’s defense is among the best we’ve gone up against, but I’ve studied it. I know each of their strengths and their weaknesses.
Number twenty-three is too aggressive. One good fake out and he’s three steps in the wrong direction.
Seventeen plays up top, but he’s bad at listening to the guys at the back with a better viewpoint of the field.
Nine is fast, but he runs straight on, allowing players to get away from him easily. If he’s playing near twenty-three, they often leave holes that can provide us opportunities.
And finally, their goalie. He’s a big guy. Quick too. But he lacks confidence. Especially when his team is down. If we can get one past him, the likelihood of getting another goes up significantly.
I pass to Rowan and cut to the middle, splitting the defenders. Two shift immediately to cover me. Austin is open on the far side, but a long pass is too risky. Instead, Rowan fakes right and moves left. The defenders slide that way with him. Austin is covered, but he’s hard to defend one-on-one.
Rowan kicks the ball to him, and while Austin heads to the goal, both Rowan and I position ourselves for a rebound.
As predicted, Austin gets a look at the goal. He firesto the net. The goalie jumps to the left to block it easily. Rowan is there to get in another kick. Magically, the goalie gets to that one in time too, and Mountainview takes possession.
Fuck no.
I’m on the ball fast. I’m not giving up without a fight. I use my body, blocking the player’s path and his view. I’m bigger and faster. As he tries to cut around me, I get my look at the ball. I only manage to get a small piece of it, but it’s enough to separate the ball and wedge myself between them.
My nerves calm and all the noise falls away as I kick the ball high and wide. Mountainview’s goalie dives, but he’s not fast enough. The ball sails into the back of the net.
“Hell yes.” Rowan’s voice is the first thing to come through the quiet focus. He palms the top of my head and the rest of the team huddles around.
I can see the relief on their faces. The game is tied up and they’re ready to finish this thing. Mountainview doesn’t stand a chance against us when we’re playing like a team.
When I break free from my teammates, I glance toward the crowd. Lacey is easy to spot. She’s jumping up and down, waving a sign over her head. I can’t hear her, but her mouth is open wide like she’s yelling. Cheering for me.
I toss a wink in her direction on my way to the sideline. Her smile widens. It feels better than I could have imagined having her here for me.
“All right. Settle down,” Dad says. “Nice job, but it’s not over. There’s plenty of time, but we have to stop them. Do not let them get a clear shot.”
Heads nod in agreement all around, and we take the field. The small shift in momentum has our feet moving faster, but Mountainview isn’t giving up.
It’s a battle to keep them from taking the lead again. They get two shots on the net, but Barrett comes through big for us, blocking both of them.
The crowd is doing everything they can to fire us up, and it works. We’re finally playing like a team that believes they deserve to win.
Austin steals the ball on Mountainview’s side and breaks away. I sprint down the field with him, putting myself in a position to score. He passes to me, but the defender is anticipating it and sprints quickly toward me. I’m the one people expect to take the shot in these situations. I square up like I’m going to kick the ball into the net, but as soon as the defender is on his heels, I send the ball back to Austin. He’s ready. With a smile, he blasts it into the net.
I run to him, and we meet in the middle, jumping and hugging. We didn’t give up and we won.
I can feel the crowd’s excitement even before I finally glance over at the fans standing and yelling. I swear I can hear Lacey over all of them. Her hair bounces along with her as she screams and cheers.
“What do ya say, Cap?” Rowan asks, placing a hand on top of my head and shaking me. I pull my gaze away from Lacey.
“I say we’re one game closer to the championship.”
“Of course you’d say that.”
