Alumni who played on the Columbus School Girls High School Soccer Team challenged the current team to a match last Saturday, February 25, as part of the  TCS 70 year anniversary celebration.

HS girl’s soccer trainer, Hernan Arango, planned the match for alumni to bond with the current team and to reunite old friendships between players. Both nostalgia and a mix of emotions accompanied the match.

“It is very gratifying to come back to the place where I lived so many great experiences and where the soccer made me grow a lot as human being,” Mariana Echeverry, Class of 2013, said.

The game was one hour long and alumni beat this year’s team 1-0.  The match was interrupted by logistical problems since the soccer field was also needed to park cars.

“The game wasn’t easy, most of the best alumni were playing on the field. Even though they hadn’t played for a while, their talent was not lost,” next season’s captain, Maria Antonia Escobar, said.

About twenty alumni, ages 19 to 26, participated and all had the opportunity to play.  Many insisted their desire to play soccer was never lost. All agreed it was a great experience to come back to school and play, and some volunteered return two Saturdays a month to train and play matches with the current team.

“After playing 6 years at the school, I miss a lot to play and live these moments with my friends and the team because we are all like a family. It will be great to play again,” Susana Gomez, Class of 2014, said.

Alumni were very proud to see that the sense of family was never lost in the team. As stated by Echeverry, what she enjoyed most about being part of the team was the sense of belonging and the enduring relationships she built with her teammates.

“What I miss the most about the school is the soccer team. I miss my teammates and Chapo, and I will always consider them as my second family,” Maria Rosa, Class of 2016, said.

After the match, many alumni, especially the older, agreed many things had changed and many had not since they left school. What had changed was that the current team had the opportunity to play many tournaments that did not exist 10 years ago, and what had not was girls’ attitude on the field.

“First of all, attitude is very important. When you set up a goal you can always reach but with dedication and working as a team,” HS girls’ soccer team captain, Juanita Agudelo, said.

Arango emphasized on the evolution of the training process since he became HS girls’ soccer coach. Today, most of the girls who are on the team played soccer since age 8, but 10 years ago girls learned to play on middle school.

“With the first teams I had to teach them from the basics of the game and many achieved a good level at 12th grade. Today it is easier because girls get to High School with a lot of experience and I only need to reinforce some concepts, especially the tactics,” Arango said.