The Fuquay-Varina High School womens soccer team has finished a season to be proud of. After winning the conference championship with an undefeated 11-0-1 record, the Bengals moved into the state playoffs.
They played hard all the way through the postseason until their amazing run ended on May 18 with a 2-0 loss in the third round. Even though the playoff loss hurts, their great 20-2-2 total record shows the team has a bright future.
A huge part of the Bengals high scoring offense came from sophomore forward Bella Bugallo. Bugallo is leading the team with 42 points and 17 goals. She averaged 0.8 goals per match, which means she almost always scored when she played. Still, Bugallo gives all the credit to her teammates.
“I think our midfield was doing really well with passing, working on composure and my teammates always put the ball in the right spot,” Bugallo said. “They got the ball to where it needed to be. Our forwards and wide players brought it in, and I just tapped it in close to the net.”
Helping lead those fast attacks was junior midfielder Violet Terrasse. She put up great numbers even though she had some tough luck.
Terrasse finished second on the team with 35 points, scoring 13 goals and tying for the team lead with nine assists. Doing all this was hard because she missed some time on the bench.
“I feel like I contributed in goals and assists, but I wish I could have been in more games,” said Terrasse, explaining that she missed four or five games due to being sick and injured.
Still, other teams knew how good she was and defended her tightly.
“They expect me to continue that and stay consistent,” Terrasse said.
Junior winger Sofia Del Valle also did an amazing job helping the offense. She passed for nine assists and earned 29 points this season. By running hard on the sides of the field and finding open teammates near the net, Del Valle kept the other teams guessing and made it easy for the Bengals to score. Del Valle says she is excited for next season.
A lot of those smart passes went straight to Bugallo and Terrasse.
“Bella and Violet built a lot of chemistry throughout the season,” Del Valle said. “We practiced together so much that we kind of knew where each other would be without even saying anything. In fast breaks, communication is super important, and we trusted each other to make the right runs and passes.”
Looking back at the year, Del Valle says her proudest moment was seeing how well the team came together.
“Everyone bought into working hard for each other, and going undefeated in conference was something really special,” she said.
Now that the season is over, the Bengals are already looking ahead to next year. Other teams will be watching out for FVHS next spring, but the players are ready for the challenge. Bugallo keeps it simple for how she will handle extra defense next year.
“Just doing what we do and practicing more,” said Bugallo.
Terrasse feels the same way as she gets ready for her senior year. She says she wants to “just keep training hard, keep a positive attitude, and be ready for next season.”
With some of their best scorers coming back, the Bengals are ready to turn this year’s loss into a win next year.
