Tampa Prep wants a second state soccer title

Throughout the course of the day Tuesday, Tampa Prep senior soccer player Isabel Dalence posed the simple query to teammate and fellow senior Amber Miller:

"Are you ready for our last high school practice, ever?"

Miller said the thought hadn't really occurred to her that the workout at Tampa Prep (19-5-2) in preparation for the Class 2A state semifinal match against Winter Haven Trinity Prep would be her last at the high school level.

"I didn't even think about it," Miller said. "Then I was like, wait a minute, what this is, is the last practice before the state final four."

One of the team's seven seniors, six of them starters, Miller's calm demeanor is something Terrapins second-year coach Cindy Schofield is hoping spreads throughout.

"For us, the key is to just stay relaxed," Schofield said. "Not to worry about the other teams, but just to worry about us."

But for the team's seniors, it is a last chance to recapture the state title it won in 2008.

"Our senior class has built this program," Schofield said. "They've taken it to a whole different level, and I think a state championship their senior year is the icing they would like to put on that cake."

"They remember that freshman year when they won it and they want to leave Tampa Prep on that note again."

The Terrapins' 2A title in 2008 came by defeating Delray Beach American Heritage in penalty kicks, followed by a 2009 loss in the semifinals in penalty kicks and a 2-0 loss in the final last season, both to American Heritage.

Tampa Prep's senior starters - Miller, forward Jackie Rosenthal, defenders Caroline Cheek, Dalence, Lauren Knoke and keeper MacKenzie Logan - aren't looking past any opponent, according to Schofield. However, Schofield said the team is focused on winning and perhaps doing so against American Heritage, which faces Gainesville St. Francis in the other semifinal today.

"When they talk about the past, all the talk is about the year we won it," Schofield said. "I like that we don't look back and say, 'What if?' We look back and remember when it was great and want it that way again."

The offense has been led this season by junior Colby Maffei, whose 41 goals have her in the top three in state scoring. Rosenthal, a forward who has 21 goals and 10 assists, said the lesson the team's seniors have to impart in the final preparation is simple:

"The most important thing I've learned here is it doesn't matter how skilled one team is over another, it's who is the most motivated - who wants it the most," she said. "This year we want it the most, and we don't want to go out without another state championship."

Schedule

GIRLS SOCCER STATE FINAL FOUR

At University of Tampa,Pepin Stadium

WEDNESDAY

Class 2A Semifinals

Gainesville St. Francis Catholic vs. Delray Beach American Heritage, 5 p.m.

Winter Park Trinity Prep vs. Tampa Prep, 7:15 p.m.

THURSDAY

Class 3A Semifinals

Jacksonville Bolles vs. Miami Gulliver Prep, 10:30 a.m.

Orlando Lake Highland Prep vs. St. Pete Catholic, 12:45 p.m.

Class 4A Semifinals

Ponte Vedra vs. Merritt Island, 3 p.m.

Harmony vs. Steinbrenner, 5:15 p.m.

Class 2A Championship

Semifinal winners, 7:30 p.m.

FRIDAY

Class 5A Semifinals

Orange Park Fleming Island vs. Fort Lauderdale St. Thomas Aquinas, 10:30 a.m.

Newsome vs. Seminole, 12:45 p.m.

Class 6A Semifinals

Oviedo vs. Miami Palmetto, 3 p.m.

Vero Beach vs. Parkland Marjory Stoneman Douglas, 5:15 p.m.

Class 3A Championship

Semifinal winners, 7:30 p.m.

SATURDAY

Class 4A Championship

Semifinal winners, 11 a.m.

Class 5A Championship

Semifinal winners, 1:30 p.m.

Class 6A Championship

Semifinal winners, 4 p.m.