The Miners girls soccer team fell 2-0 to the Green Canyon Wolves last Friday in the state championship game, held at RSL’s America First Field. Despite the heartbreaking loss, where Park City held tight with the 48th-ranked (nationally) Wolves before a narrow penalty kick call broke the scoreless tie in the second half, their Head Coach Anthony DiCicco remains positive about his team’s season and the future of the program.
DiCicco touched upon the obvious fact that everyone outside of Green Canyon ended their season with a loss, while stating that declaring their season a failure in any way would be wildly incorrect.
“Our season was an unequivocal success,” said DiCicco in a prepared statement. “For a program, that had only won a couple of games two years ago and narrowly missed out on making the tournament last season, to show up and put the work in everyday, to embrace every challenge that was presented to them with solidarity and mutual investment and, yes, to find a way to win 15-straight games on the road to the final was special and probably surprising to everyone outside our environment.”
He also talked about how proud he was of his team Friday for once more showing off their character and heart, two reasons why he’s confident a singular loss to a stronger Wolves team won’t half the program’s progress.
“Of the 25 players on our postseason roster, 18 return next year,” shared DiCicco on next year’s team and the future of the program. “There is no question that they (this year’s team) inspired the players who will follow them. The future of the program will feed off the belief of this team, as this year’s team fed off last year’s. … We wrote a great chapter this year and set the stage for the next chapters.”
DiCicco says the key to furthered development, and possible getting over the hump for their first state title since 2005, will be continuing to harp on staying in the moment, a common theme throughout this season. He’ll declare next season a success, so long as his players keep improving and enjoying the ride.
It is clear this team and others alike make their own unique, profound impacts on DiCicco.
“This team, this season, has made (me) a better version of myself. … Long after the results of the season have faded and we reflect back on these months in the fall of 2023, I’ll just remember how much fun it all was, how much fun they made it. This is their team, their program and it’s been a tremendous privilege to be along with them on this ride,” he said.
The Miners will likely next return to the pitch in early August, again with a motivated and laser-focused DiCicco at the helm.