WATERTOWN, S.D. — Backed by an 8-5-1 regular-season mark, the seventh-seeded Watertown girls soccer team welcomes No. 10 Sioux Falls Jefferson to Allen Mitchell Field on Tuesday for a first-round playoff battle.
Watertown previously dominated the Cavaliers in a 5-1 home victory on Sept. 15, but Head Coach Shannon Elverud knows postseason soccer requires a fresh level of focus.
“We came into the season knowing we had probably the hardest schedule given to us across the whole state,” Elverud said. “So we were prepared for a tough season, but yeah, the girls have done a great job, but we’re obviously not done yet.”
Watertown’s success this season this fall stems directly from its adaptability. Navigating a tough schedule forced Elverud and her coaching staff to adjust their approach on the fly.
“Discipline is a huge thing,” Elverud explained. “We started out the year in a different formation. We realized quickly after two, three games that we needed to make a little bit of an adjustment… We’ve actually made three different adjustments to our formation out on that field throughout the season.”
Executing those mid-season adjustments relied heavily on the roster’s versatility across age groups. Featuring six seniors, a small core of juniors, and a large group of freshmen and sophomores, the team built strong chemistry and mid-match flexibility.
“They know their jobs out on that field, and so it’s just a matter of communicating that to them, and they’ll make that adjustment to continue to power forward,” Elverud said.
As the Class AA tournament begins on Tuesday at Allen Mitchell Field, Elverud has placed a major emphasis on mental preparation. Over the weekend, players were assigned personal “homework” to analyze their performances and identify key team adjustments ahead of kickoff.
“Playoffs are going to be tougher than regular season games,” Elverud said. “It’s win or go home now. So we have to show up, we have to walk onto that field with our heads held high, we have to want it more than our opponent, and be our best selves all 80 minutes that we’re on that field.”
