Written by Kamyar Moradi and Anish Vasudevan.

The MVHS varsity boys soccer team honored their seniors Wednesday, Feb. 6, as they geared up to play against their rival, Cupertino HS. For the participating seniors, this would be their last home game of the season, and the final time they take the field as a part of the MVHS varsity soccer team.

The game started off slowly, as each team struggled to maintain possession of the ball. As the half progressed, both teams settled in to the game and strung some passes together. CHS began to create the first few chances of the game, but MVHS responded with chances of their own. The Matadors’ defense kept CHS from their goal, and the majority of the play occured in the midfield. With constant back and forth play from the two teams, the score was still 0-0 going into halftime.

With the second half underway, the game continued to be a defensive battle for both sides, and only a few shots on goal. For the shots that were on target, goalkeeper and senior Hassham Malik made numerous saves throughout the game.

With the game winding down, the two teams were about to finish with a tie. In the final minute of the game, however, a CHS striker obtained the ball outside the box of the MVHS goal and fired a shot in the top left corner, effectively winning the game. Malik was very dissatisfied with the result.

“That last goal was offsides, I think at least,” Malik said. “That wasn’t supposed to be a goal. It just happens.”

Reflecting on his last game with MVHS soccer, senior Youssef Khater describes what he is going to miss the most from his time with this team.

“It’s fun to play with your friends. Because on your [club] soccer team, like it's not guarantee that you're doing that.”