Abbie Bosco has spent a good deal of her time at Andrew on the sidelines, rooting on the Thunderbolts as a cheerleader.
In the spring, though, she stars on the soccer field — inspiring others to cheer her on. The senior midfielder enjoys being a part of both worlds.
“It’s definitely very different,” Bosco said. “It’s an experience that I love. I love being able to transition between both. I love to do cool flips while also being an awesome soccer player and looking all tough on the field.
“It’s definitely funny when I tell people. They say, ‘Wow, that’s an interesting combination.’ But I love it because it’s two different sports and they bring out two different sides of me that I love.”
Bosco had her teammates cheering Monday night when she scored her first goal of the season, helping Andrew to a 4-1 nonconference win over host Mother McAuley in Chicago.
Grace Wood scored twice for the Thunderbolts (5-4), while Paige Swaw added a goal.
Freshman forward Calli Edwards scored her 13th goal of the season, while Gabriella Martin made 11 saves for Mother McAuley (4-1-1).
“We did a great job playing the ball on the ground and passing to feet,” Wood said. “We play better when we’re connecting, and I think we all did a good job with that this game.”
Bosco was one of Andrew’s top scorers last season but was asked to take on a new role this season as a defensive midfielder. It’s a move she has embraced.
“I’m definitely a player that’s always up for the challenge and ready to take on any spot (coach Loren Zolk) gives me,” Bosco said. “It was definitely a challenge at first because I want to go, go, go. I’m always used to that.
“I had my two center backs, (Jessica Morawski and Isabella Kreydich), guiding me through it. I told them to give me those corrections and I listened to them. Soon enough, I settled into the position and I love it.”
Zolk confirmed it has been a perfect fit.
“I wasn’t sure where Abbie was going to play for us this season,” he said. “She’s played all over the place for us. I tasked her with playing defensive mid for a certain game, and even though she hadn’t played there a lot, she went out and did exactly what I needed her to do.
“Ever since then, I haven’t been able to get her out of there. She does what we need there, and I think it’s been a successful move for us.”
Swaw scored the only goal of the first half before Wood made it 2-0 early in the second half.
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Although the Thunderbolts tacked on two more scores, Mother McAuley coach Jenna Ryan was pleased with the way her team battled.
“I told the girls they should be proud that they fought until the very end,” Ryan said. “It should be good motivation because teams like Andrew are who we’re going to have to beat deeper in the season.
“We know we can compete with teams like this. These are the teams we want to play because it’s great to be challenged.”
Bosco, meanwhile, had been disappointed with not scoring. She broke through in that department Monday, ripping in a high 20-yard shot to give Andrew a commanding 3-0 lead with 26 minutes to go.
“It was a very exciting moment,” Bosco said. “It was my first of the season. I was getting down on myself. I was like, ‘I’m not scoring. I was a big scorer last year. This is really rough for me.’
“But all my teammates are super supportive. They were so excited for me and over the moon that I finally got that opportunity to score.”
Steve Millar is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.
