The West Jessamine girls’ soccer team fell to Greenwood 4-1 during a stifling, late-summer afternoon on Saturday in what was the eighth game in 10 days for the Lady Colts.

The eight-game stretch began on Sept. 14 against Paul Laurence Dunbar. During that span, the Lady Colts went undefeated with quality wins against Lexington Catholic and St. Mary’s Episcopal School, Tennessee, as well as a tournament win in the Science Hill Invitational.

That streak ended when a talented Greenwood (10-1) team came into town. The Gators overcame an opening goal from Eva Mitchell and proceeded to record four straight goals en route to the win. As deserving of the win as Greenwood is, the loss for West was nothing but a culmination of a recent brutal stretch of schedule and the stifling heat.

Granted, it would be wrong to take anything away from Greenwood. The Gators entered the match surrendering just eight goals on the year; however, West appeared to be a step behind throughout the afternoon, repeatedly allowing the Gators to gash the middle of the Lady Colts’ defense.

Of course, with two games remaining in the regular season (Henry Clay and Tates Creek), West’s overall record means little with the district tournament just around the corner. Wednesday’s match against Mercer will test the waters of where the Colts stand in the 46th District Tournament — Though an 18-2 scoring margin through three district games (two against East, one against Mercer) attests to West’s breadth of comfort throughout the district.

The Lady Colts will enter the tournament coming off consecutive games against highly ranked Tates Creek and Henry Clay. With both Tates Creek and Henry Clay residing as two of of the top teams in the state, West will be able to dab its foot in the water of what region tournament play will consist of before it meets up against either East Jessamine or Mercer in the district final.

As West head coach Kevin Wright often says, “We just take it one game at a time.” That sentiment holds true in the coming weeks as West will be able to gauge itself one last time against two top ten teams before the postseason begins.

Though the schedule has been brutal for West — it has the toughest schedule in Kentucky — the Lady Colts can thank a season of dedication and hard work for the possibilities that await them in the region tournament, and possibly, beyond.