Pirate Girls Primed For Full Season Schedule

By VERNON ROBISON

The Progress

Members of the Moapa Valley High School Girls Soccer team got down to business in practice last week. Dewspite high afternoon temperatures, the girls were sweating it out getting ready for the team’s first home game of the 2021-22 season. That will be held this week on Thursday, Aug. 19 against Cristo Rey High School, a non-league charter school from Las Vegas.

“I am really excited about this group of girls,” said MVHS Girls Soccer coach Lisa Cornwall. “They get along really well together, they work well together and I think they will be a great team.”

The team lost many of its star players to graduation last year. The young team is keeping two seniors: Ellie Cornwall and Paige Bodily, both of whom will offer strong leadership to the group.

But Cornwall is encouraged by the level of young talent she has coming into the varsity team this year. Juniors Brooke Sherwood, Paige and Talli Fairchild, Lexy Fullman and Tatum Yardley bring fire and skill to the field for the Pirates.

“All of them have come up playing for me over the years so I know the skills they bring,” Cornwall said. “They are all strong players.”

Cornwall is also pulling some very good sophomores and a couple of freshman up from the JV team into Varsity this year.

One of these talented sophomores is Savannah Burt who will be playing as keeper. “Savannah played as keeper on the JV team last year as a freshman,” Cornwall said. “She was just a natural.”

Last spring, the Pirates played an abbreviated scheduled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The team played seven games and lost no games. They did tie 1-1 against the Virgin Valley team in a season closer, after they had beaten the Bulldogs 3-0 earlier in the season.

Only a few months later, the Pirates are looking forward to a full season of play again.
“The girls are really excited to be able to play more games against a lot more opponents this year,” Cornwall said. “We won’t complain too much about last season because we did get to play at least. A lot of schools didn’t get that. But it just wasn’t the same. So we are looking forward to this season more than ever.”

In fact, there is so much excitement in the program, that the MVHS team is hosting its first game the day after the state-mandated eligibility period begins.

“We are looking forward to play Cristo Rey even though they are not in the league, so it doesn’t really count towards any final record,” Cornwall said. “But it will be a good chance to get out and work on some skills and team-play.”

The Pirates will start the regular schedule on Thursday, Aug. 26 travelling to Western High School in Las Vegas.

Upcoming home games will include Desert Pines on Aug. 31, Legacy on Sept. 9, Cimarron on Sept. 10 and Boulder City on Sept. 14.

Cornwall said that her team always looks forward to their first game of the season against Virgin Valley.

That game comes late this season. It is scheduled for Oct. 4 on the Pirate field.
“The Bulldogs are always our top competitor,” she said. “So those rivalry games are always fun.”

Girls Soccer 2021 Season Schedule

JV / V
Aug 19                   5 PM      Cristo Rey
Aug 24      5 / 3:30 PM      Western
Aug 25      TBA                    Crossover Cup
Aug 31      3:30 / 5 PM      Desert Pines
Sep 09      3:30 / 5 PM      Legacy
Sep 10      5 / 6:30 PM      Cimarron
Sep 14      5 / 6:30 PM      Boulder City
Sep 20      5 / 3:30 PM      Del Sol
Sep 22      3:30 / 5 PM      Durango
Sep 24      5 / 3:30 pm      Equippo
Sep 28      3:30 / 5 PM      SLAM
Sep 30      3:30 / 5 PM      Pahrump
Oct 04      5 / 6:30 PM      Virgin Valley

Oct 06      5 / 3:30 PM      Chaparral
Oct 08      4 / 5:30 PM      Mojave
Oct 14      5 / 3:30 PM      Cheyenne
Oct 18      5 / 6:30 PM      Virgin Valley
Oct 20      3:30 / 5 PM      Chaparral
Oct 22      5:30 / 4 PM      Mojave
Oct 28      5 / 3:30 PM      Cheyenne

Nov 2-3 Regionals
Nov 18-21 State South

Home games in bold
Schedule subject to change without notice