Without a doubt, the most important game for a graduating senior is a win-or-go-home playoff game. In Missouri, soccer is an incredibly competitive high school sport. It takes a lot of hard work, team camaraderie and talent for a team to push through the competition and make it to the State playoffs.

Class 3 Ladue Soccer, got through the regular season, District games one Sectionals game then the final four state playoff games. On Saturday, Nov. 19, it all came down to one final game for the State title. However, Ladue unfortunately fell to East High School, a Kansas City team, with a final score of 2-0. 

“It was a tough game, and even though we didn’t win, I am still happy with how hard our team worked and the season we were able to perform,” senior Will Taylor said. “Making it through playoffs wasn’t an easy battle.”

Taylor, a defenseman on the team, had a rocky start to the playoff season. In the heat of the game, Taylor received a yellow card early on in the game, causing a second mishap to get him removed from the game.

“We both got red cards in the second half of district finals against Whitfield,” Taylor said. “That caused us to miss the rest of that game and the next game, and our team had to play one man down.”

With the red cards, they were sidelined for the crucial district finals game, leaving their teammates with the daunting task of securing victory without key contributors. However, a silver lining emerged in the playoff system. While they would miss the district finals, the red-carded players would be allowed to return for the following games, assuming they won. The team pulled through and went on their way to State. 

The final game was a close one – the score remained 0-0 until halfway through the second half. East scored two goals in one minute, leaving Ladue fighting to keep the game alive. Unfortunately, the time ran out and Ladue surrendered to East, going home with the second-place title. 

“It’s unfortunate that we didn’t finish the job in the end, but given our season we never were supposed to be there,” Schuldt said. “Our season was a Cinderella story — our team is the only team in Missouri to have gotten to state as the fifth seed. While I’m sad my time with Ladue soccer is over, I’m really happy we got the opportunity to even make it this far.”