The high school soccer team drove down to the International School of Busan (ISB) for the soccer 7s cup on May 23. ISB, Handong International School (HIS), and a new co-op of Gyeongnam International School (GIFS) and Atherton International School (AIS) walked onto the field for the tourney.

Varsity came out torching in the first game against HIS. Colin Ji netted two goals and they played phenomenal defense. They dictated the possession of the ball and played at their own pace. Due to an unfortunate bounce off the defender, the game ended 2:1, a DIS victory. 

Next up, they faced an unprecedented group with a combination of two schools: GIFS and AIS. The hybrid team possessed the length and skill that stunned the Jets. They scored goal after goal and it came down to a tie game with 10 seconds left. On their final attack, an AIS striker threaded the ball through the defensive tackles and won the game 3:2. 

Even after pouring it their all, they lost the game. The defeat stung like a thousand bees. Still panting for air, the players drudgingly walked to the center to shake the opponent’s hands. Regardless, they held their heads up high and brought each other up to prepare for the next game.

“I felt like throughout the game and even before the game, we were the better team overall, but I think that the thought that we were going to beat them for sure before the game started kinda got through us and didn’t have us working as hard from the beginning as we did with the HIS game. That attitude lingered throughout the entire match and the other players from the other teams hustled really well. They have good communication. We did tie the game twice and were very excited but it was a bummer to take a defeat at the end of the game with a last-minute goal,” said Colin Ji, varsity striker.

The final match-up against ISB agitated the DIS players. The game proceeded with a lot of shirt-pulling, trash-talking, and yellow cards. Players kicked dirt, annoyed by the referee’s decision. The audience from the benches rose with confusion with every call. With everyone fired up, the bears and the jets locked horns. It ended 1-0 with a Bear’s victory. Both teams showed sportsmanship and the spite stayed only on the pitch. 

“I believe that the referee’s decisions throughout the whole game were absurd. They were the worst calls I have ever seen in Futsal, Soccer, KISAC, SKAC, you name it. One of the worst calls in such an important game like that is when a win can determine if you can go to the finals or not, I believe that the refs play a huge role and they were very biased,” said Aaron Shin, varsity midfielder. 

Although the day ended for varsity, JV squeezed their way into the finals. With a record of 2 wins and 1 loss, they matched up against HIS in the championship game. After the strenuous 30 minutes, HIS brought the trophy back home. The DIS win streak ended. 

Both JV and Varsity sought the championship more than ever but fell short. They put in two hundred percent of their effort and pushed themselves past their limits. Even with the losses, the team felt more connected than ever.