by Jake Maddox
“I mean, if we had a Lincoln team this year,” Brittany went on, “we’d all be starters … easy!”
The others watched Brittany walk back and forth. “You said that already,” Jasmine said. “And you’re making me nervous with all your walking back and forth, and back and forth and back and forth.”
“Nervous?” Anna joked. “You’re making me dizzy!”
Everyone laughed, except for Brittany.
“How could you be anything but nervous?” Brittany said. “Or sick? I’m both!”
“Try to relax,” Anna said. “Coach Z will be here with the list any second.”
“I can’t relax,” Brittany said. “I have to keep moving.”
“Hi, girls,” Coach Z said suddenly. “I think I have what you’re waiting for!”
“How does it look?” Brittany asked. She leaned over Coach Z’s shoulder as she put up the list. The other girls jumped up and ran over to the board.
“I think you’ll all be pretty pleased,” Coach Zimmerman said. She smiled and stood back.
“We all made it!” Jasmine said.
“Yes!” Diana said.
“And you’re starting on defense, Jasmine,” Eve pointed out.
“And I’m starting center!” Brittany shouted.
“I’m not surprised,” Jasmine said, giving Brittany a hug.
“What about me?” Anna said, trying to get a look at the list from behind her friends.
“Of course you made it,” Brittany said. “And … oh.”
“Oh?” Anna said, finally checking out the list. “What do you mean, oh?”
Anna looked down the list of names. She had made the team, all right. But there it was, in black and white: “Starting goalie: Lindsay Rivers.”
CHAPTER 7
UNFAIR
“I can’t believe this,” Jasmine said. The Lincoln girls were sitting on their bus on the way to East Side for practice. “It’s totally unfair!”
“Unfair?” Brittany said. She bounced out of her seat as the bus hit a bump. “It’s more than unfair!”
Eve shook her head. “I thought for sure Anna would start after Lindsay let in that goal of yours, Brittany,” she said.
Brittany gritted her teeth. “Aren’t you angry, Anna?” she asked.
Anna shrugged. She was disappointed, but she didn’t want to let herself get angry. “I guess I’m a little angry,” she finally said.
“Coach Z!” Brittany called to the front of the bus. “Can you do anything about this?”
Coach Zimmerman smiled weakly and shook her head. “Sorry, girls,” she said. “I’m disappointed too, but I’m not the coach anymore. There’s nothing I can do.”
“You’re still our coach,” Jasmine said. “I mean, like you said, we’re still Eagles, right?”
Coach Zimmerman nodded. “Sure, and I’m still the Eagles’ coach. But when it comes to the Tigers, I don’t have any power at all.”
“None?” Anna said. “We all thought you were, like, the second coach!”
Coach Zimmerman laughed lightly. “Nope,” she said. “I’ll be coming to as many practices with you girls as I can, because I care about you and love to watch you play and win! But you’re Tigers this year, which means you’re Coach Suzy’s team. And she’s the only coach you have.”
Anna slumped in her seat.
When the Lincoln girls arrived at the courtyard soccer field, the East Side girls were in uniform and waiting. Lindsay and Marissa ran over to Anna right away.
“So, Second String,” Lindsay said to Anna with a sneer, “decided to show up?”
“Of course I showed up,” Anna said. “I’m on the team. Why wouldn’t I?”
Marissa laughed and Lindsay shushed her with a wicked smile.
“Oh, I don’t know,” Lindsay said, looking back at Anna. “I’m not sure I’d show up if I were you.”
“Watch it, Lindsay,” Brittany said, stepping up. Lindsay glared at her.
“Just leave me alone, Lindsay, okay?” Anna replied. She turned away and started to do some stretches, trying to look like Lindsay’s comments hadn’t bothered her.
The truth was, though, they had.
CHAPTER 8
SECOND STRING
The Tigers’ first game came quickly. After a week of practices, Anna and her friends were starting to feel at home.
Lindsay and her sidekick, Marissa, had even let up the teasing a little. Still, Anna sometimes caught the two East Side girls whispering and looking at her.
Before the first game was about to start, Anna sat on the Tigers’ bench.
Kaitlyn was kicking the ball around in front of the goal. She spotted Anna on the bench. “Hi,” Kaitlyn said as she sat down next to Anna.
“Hi, Kaitlyn,” Anna replied. “Nice shot. It was a really good one.”
“Thanks,” said Kaitlyn. “I’ve seen Lindsay play so many times, I know all her problems. She’s easy for me to score on.”
“Are you starting today?” Anna asked.
“Yup,” Kaitlyn said. “Right wing.”
Anna nodded. She watched Jasmine and Brittany pass the ball, while Di and Eve tried to stop them.
“Don’t worry about it, Anna,” Kaitlyn said. “I’m sure Coach Suzy will let you play today. She just knows Lindsay so well. She’s seen her play so many times.”
“I guess,” Anna said, looking at her feet. She tried to smile. When she looked up at the field again, Lindsay and Marissa were standing in their goal, whispering and watching her.
“Don’t even pay attention to Lindsay,” Kaitlyn said. “She just knows she’s got competition now.”
Anna shrugged. “If you say so,” she said.
“Trust me, you’ll be playing before the end of the game,” Kaitlyn said.
Once the game had started, Anna started to feel better. She loved watching soccer almost as much as she loved playing it.
Kaitlyn and Brittany each scored one goal. After Anna had watched Lindsay make some very nice saves, she had to admit that Lindsay was pretty great at goal.
With only a couple of minutes left, Coach Suzy put her hand on Anna’s shoulder. “Okay, Anna,” the coach said. “Let’s see what you’ve got.”
Anna looked up. “You want me in? Now?” Anna asked.
Coach Suzy nodded. “Yup,” she said. Then she called, “Lindsay, take a seat.”
Lindsay looked over at the sidelines and shot the coach a confused look. Coach Suzy waved her over, and she shrugged and jogged toward the bench.
Anna got to her feet. Smiling, she took over at goal. She passed Lindsay on the way. “Good luck, Second String,” Lindsay said with a sneer.
Anna ignored her and took her place in front of the goal.
Okay, she thought. Here we go. Time to show these Tigers what you’re made of.
She didn’t have to wait long. The other team’s center was driving with both wings, and a shot would be coming soon.
The center faked out Marissa. Then the center passed around Jasmine to the right wing.
“Here she comes,” Anna said to herself. She was ready to spring at the shot.
Then it came. Anna watched the girl’s feet closely. She pulled back, looking left and low, but Anna saw her foot turning. The girl was definitely shooting to the right. There was no doubt about it.
Anna dove to her right just as the shot took off. The ball hit her in the stomach, and she hugged it against her.
Blocked!
“Woo!” Brittany called from midfield. “Nice save, Reed!”
Anna didn’t take the time to celebrate. She immediately got to her feet, held the ball in both hands, and drew back to kick.
Anna’s kick was long and high. By the time it hit the ground, the game was over.
“Great save, Anna,” Coach Suzy said when the players returned to the bench after the final whistle.
“Thanks, Coach Suzy,” Anna replied, smiling.
She grabbed a towel from the bench and wiped her face. When she pulled th
e towel away, Coach Suzy had walked off.
Lindsay and Marissa were standing there. They glared at Anna.
“It didn’t even matter,” Marissa told Anna. “We would have won even if they scored.”
“Yeah,” added Lindsay. “Besides, it was just a lucky leap … Second String.”
CHAPTER 9
IMPOSSIBLE
The next game was a few days later. Before the game, Coach Suzy walked back and forth with her clipboard. All the Tigers sat on the bench.
“You girls have been looking great in practice,” Coach Suzy said. “Today we’re going to try a few new things.”
The coach listed a few new positions and switched some players around. Kaitlyn was getting a shot at center.
“Nice job, Kaitlyn,” Brittany said. “You’ll do great.”
“Thanks,” Kaitlyn replied.
“And starting in goal,” Coach Suzy went on, “let’s see Anna today.”
Lindsay jumped up. “What?” she yelled. “After my perfect game the other day?”
“Take a seat, please, Lindsay,” Coach Suzy said without looking up. “Let’s not compete with our teammates, okay?”
Lindsay sat back on the bench. “This is totally unfair,” she mumbled to herself. Marissa sat down next to her and glared at Anna.
“Don’t let them bug you,” Kaitlyn said. “Just play your best.”
Coach Suzy blew her whistle. “All right,” she said. “Let’s do this!”
The game was very close. After thirty minutes, the score was still 0–0. Anna had blocked a few shots, and Brittany and Kaitlyn had each been stopped by the other team’s goalie a couple of times. Something big would have to happen soon.
Kaitlyn tried a side pass to Brittany, but the other team got it. Soon the other team was driving down the field. Jasmine tried to cut them off, but the other team’s wing made a great pass clear across the field.
“Keep it away!” Anna called up to her defense. Marissa looked back at Anna and smirked.
What’s she smiling about? Anna wondered.
Then, just as the other team’s offense was about to corner themselves out of shot range, Marissa tumbled.
“Whoa!” Marissa cried as she hit the ground.
The other team’s offense suddenly had nothing between them and Anna’s goal. All three players charged her. Jasmine couldn’t get over to cover Marissa’s position in time. It would all be up to Anna.
The center pulled back to shoot, but as Anna watched her feet, she knew she would pass instead. Now the wing had the ball, and she was moving in fast on the right. Anna turned to face her, expecting a shot, but the wing passed across the crease.
Anna jumped to her left, but they were too fast for her. The other wing pulled back and shot behind Anna. She tried to change directions, but in midair, it was impossible.
“Goal!” the referee called out.
CHAPTER 10
JUST SLIPPED?
Anna got to her feet and brushed off her jersey and shorts. Marissa was standing at the top of the crease, smiling at her.
“Way to go, Second String,” Marissa said. “Way to lose the game for us.”
“Her?” Brittany yelled as she stormed downfield. “You’re blaming her for losing the game for us? What did you do, Marissa? Slip on a banana peel or something?”
Marissa smiled nervously and looked around. “What … what are you talking about?” she asked.
“We all saw you take a dive,” Jasmine said. “Was it just to make Anna look dumb?”
“I did not take a dive,” Marissa said. “I just slipped.”
Anna looked over at the bench. Lindsay was hanging her head and Coach Suzy was heading toward Marissa, Brittany, and Jasmine on the field.
A moment later, Diana was taking Marissa’s place on defense.
“Anna, don’t worry about that goal,” Diana said. “Coach Suzy is angry at Marissa. Even Lindsay seems angry at her.”
“Really?” Anna asked. “Even Lindsay?”
Diana nodded as play started at midfield. “Yup,” she said, jogging away to join the game in action. “Lindsay said something about not wanting to lose a game just so she could start again.”
Anna was shocked. Could it be that Lindsay cared enough about her team to give Anna a fair chance?
Brittany was fired up after Marissa’s fall. She immediately drove for the other goal and made a great shot around one defender, fooling their goalie completely. The score was 1–1. A few minutes later, Jasmine got a pass and kicked the ball up to Kaitlyn. Kaitlyn scored, making the score 2–1, East Side.
There were only a few seconds left. “We got this!” Anna shouted, clapping.
But the other team wasn’t ready to lose yet. Their offense started driving up the field. Their center faked around Jasmine and passed it off to their right wing. Diana tried to steal the ball, but the other team’s right wing passed it right between her legs!
Uh-oh, Anna thought. They want to tie this game really badly.
Anna crouched and watched the offense approach. “Here we go again,” she mumbled. She was facing their offense alone, for the second time in one game.
The center passed it off to the wing, just like last time. Anna stayed ready. The wing passed it fast and hard across the crease to the other wing, just like last time.
This time, Anna didn’t jump too soon. She watched the wing’s feet.
At the exact right moment, as the ball went high and to the right, Anna bounced. She knocked the ball with the tip of her fingers and made the save.
“Yes!” she cried, as she hit the ground.
“Nice save, Anna!” Brittany called.
“We won!” Jasmine added, pumping her fist.
Anna got to her feet and dusted herself off. The students and parents in the stands went crazy cheering for her great save.
“Nice save, Second String,” Lindsay said as the whole team gathered in the crease to celebrate. “I mean, Anna. Nice save.”
Anna smiled at her. “Thanks, Lindsay,” she said. “Hope you won’t mind sharing this goal with me for the rest of the season.”
“I’ll be happy to,” Lindsay said. “And I’m sorry.” She raised her hand for Anna to slap.
“Don’t worry about it,” Anna said, slapping Lindsay’s hand and smiling. “After all, we’re both Tigers, right?”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Eric Stevens lives in St. Paul, Minnesota. He is studying to become a middle-school English teacher. Some of his favorite things include pizza, playing video games, watching cooking shows on TV, riding his bike, and trying new restaurants. Some of his least favorite things include olives and shoveling snow.
ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR
When Tuesday Mourning was a little girl, she knew she wanted to be an artist when she grew up. Now, she is an illustrator who lives in Knoxville, Tennessee. She especially loves illustrating books for kids and teenagers. When she isn’t illustrating, Tuesday loves spending time with her husband, who is an actor, and their son, Atticus.
GLOSSARY
athletics (ath-LET-iks)—competitive sports
competition (kom-puh-TISH-uhn)—if someone or something is your competition, you are competing with them, or you are both trying to get the same thing
enemies (EN-uh-meez)—those you are fighting against
funding (FUHN-ding)—money for something
immediately (i-MEE-dee-it-lee)—right away
psychic (SYE-kik)—someone who can tell what will happen in the future
rival (RYE-vuhl)—someone whom you are competing against
second string (SEK-uhnd STRING)—if you are second string, you are not number one
sidekick (SYDE-kik)—someone’s close friend or partner
SOCCER WORDS YOU SHOULD KNOW
boundaries (BOUN-duh-reez)—the lines on the edge of the soccer field
center (SEN-tur)—one of the players whose goal is to score points
center line (SEN-tur LINE)—the line that d
ivides the soccer field in half
crease (CREES)—the area near the goal
defender (di-FEN-dur)—a person playing defense, trying to keep the other team from scoring
drills (DRILZ)—a way to practice something, by doing it over and over
goalie (GOL-ee)—the person whose role is to stop the other team from scoring by blocking their shots
kickoff (KIK-off)—at the beginning of the game, the kickoff decides which team has control of the ball
lineup (LINE-uhp)—the list of which person will be playing which position
midfield (MID-feeld)—the middle part of the field
offense (AW-fenss)—the team that is attacking or trying to score, or the players whose jobs it is to score
referee (REF-uh-REE)—someone who supervises a sports match and makes sure that all the players follow the rules
scrimmage (SKRIM-ij)—a game played for practice, usually between members of the same team
starting (STAR-ting)—if someone is a starting player, they are one of the players who are first on the field
wing (WING)—an attacking player
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. At Lincoln, the only option for girls’ soccer was to join the East Side soccer team. Can you think of other ways that the girls in this book could have played soccer, without having to join another school’s team?
2. If you had to choose between joining another school’s team or quitting your favorite sport, which would you pick? Explain your answer.
3. How do you think the girls at East Side Middle School felt to have new girls joining their team?
WRITING PROMPTS
1. Have you ever had to cooperate with someone from a rival team or group? How did you make it work? What happened? Write about it.