After a turbulent few months, the Bromfield girls varsity soccer team brought its season to a close in the second round of the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association state tournament, with a record of 6-12-2. Despite losing 7-0 to second-seeded Monson High School in the tournament, the Trojans did as well as they could amid coaching changes and injuries.
The season started out rough for the Trojans, with Coach Hussein Issa leaving the team a quarter of the way through. Though the specifics of the coaching change are vague, Bromfield Athletic Director David Boisvert conceded that the “coach decided it was best for both teams if he stepped aside.”
Co-captain Kennedy Dylewicz successfully blocks out her Maynard opponent in a game early this season. (Photo by Lisa Aciukewicz)
Gina Caissey, the junior varsity girls soccer coach, quickly stepped in to fill the gap, yet the transition was far from seamless. By the time the team resolved tensions surrounding the switch, the girls had lost several games. “We were a little out of it,” said co-captain Kennedy Dylewicz. She added that what had happened off the field with the change in coaches “was present on the field.” Caissey did not respond to Press requests for comment about the season.
Shortly after the coaching switch, Dylewicz, on track to be the team’s top scorer, suffered a serious knee injury. She spent the next month and a half supporting and helping to coach the team, which struggled to achieve unity.
The team spent the season working on passing, but often resorted to a kick-and-run style of playing that only increased their frustration and brought down morale. “By the time we did adjust, it was just too late,” said Dylewicz. “We had already dug ourselves a big hole with the rankings.”
Despite these setbacks, the Trojans had a fairly good season. Their power rankings placed them as the No. 18 seed out of 46 teams, qualifying them for the playoffs, and they went on to beat Mystic Valley Regional Charter School 7-3 in the first round of the tournament. The game marked a high point for the Trojans, instilling in them the spirit they’d lacked for many weeks.
“Though they had a losing record, it was still a good season,” said Boisvert. “They got a nice win in the playoffs, and then they had to play a really, really, really, really good team in the second round.”
In the end, the players feel they made the best of the situation. “It could have ended a lot better,” said Dylewicz. “But we made the best of what we got.”
