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By ALEC ETHEREDGE | Managing Editor

ALABASTER – With the 2023 soccer season winding down, the Thompson boys and girls soccer teams are looking to finish strong, and the Warriors started that trek to the finish with wins against Tuscaloosa County on Tuesday, April 11.

More importantly for the girls, they kept their hopes of an outside chance of getting into the playoffs alive.

The girls team picked up a 10-0 shutout of Tuscaloosa County to do just that.

Thompson scored eight goals in the opening half and added the final two necessary for the 10-goal mercy rule early in the second half. It marked a second win of at least 10-0 for the Warriors over Tuscaloosa County, as they scored 12 first-half goals against the Wildcats earlier in the season.

Now at 2-3 in area play, the Thompson girls have one area game left against Hoover at home on Tuesday, April 18 that will likely determine the second playoff spot in the area. The Warriors need the Bucs to lose to Vestavia Hills on April 14 and will then need to win the head-to-head matchup by a score of 4-0 to earn their spot.

It’s an uphill climb, but the Warriors have now won two straight games with both ending in shutouts to gain confidence and give themselves a chance after struggling through a difficult schedule of ranked teams during the month of March.

As for the boys, sitting at 2-3 in area play, they have an outside chance at the playoffs as well.

After a 4-0 win over the Wildcats, the Warriors got a confidence boost heading into some exciting matchups the rest of the way that include an area battle on the road against Hoover on April 18 as well as a final game of the year at home against No. 1 Oak Mountain.

Thompson will have to win the game against Hoover, while the Warriors also need Vestavia Hills to lose to both the Bucs and Tuscaloosa County to earn a spot in the postseason.

Thompson’s boys are currently 12-7-1 overall and 2-3 in area play with two one-goal losses to Vestavia playing a major role in the team’s postseason chances.