The University of Wisconsin-Platteville Women’s soccer team took a break from summer jobs to visit San Jose, Costa Rica Aug. 6-Aug. 14.

A team trip is usually coordinated every four years and is seen as something to boost morale, promote team bonding and enhance recruitment for the soccer program.

Team members began their stay by volunteering at an orphanage, Roble Alto. The women played and interacted with children ranging in age from 9 months to 6 years.

“We did something everyday while we were in Costa Rica,” Lindsey Harms, senior media studies major and defensive player for the team said.

Maddie Hughes, junior math education major and outside mid for the team, said that the only down time that they had was during the five hour bus rides to and from destinations.

Other activities included whitewater rafting, zip lining, city tours, flea market shopping and a hot springs tour located at the bottom of a volcano.

“There were 30 different hot tubs you could go in,” Harms said. “The temperatures ranged from 90-120 degrees. Some of them were so hot that you couldn’t even stay in them.”

Although on vacation, the Pioneers took advantage of the terrain to help them prepare for the 2014 season. Two raining sessions were conducted where the players ran drills up and down the beach, sometimes three miles at a time, to increase both endurance and leg strength.

“It killed our calves because we ran barefoot,” Hughes said.

Harms said that the team played in scrimmages against three local soccer clubs, which included UCEM Costa Rica, Alajuela, as well as San Carlos and Liberia.

Both Harms and Hughes believe that this trip, like others past, gives the Pioneers a competitive edge.

“This trip brought together returners and newcomers in that the entire time we were all one big team,” Harms said.

The only time the team was split up was to fit into rafts for whitewater rafting, which Hughes said was still a team building exercise as five to six women were put into each raft and had to work together in order to maneuver through the water.

Both Harms and Hughes have high hopes that the lessons and skills learned during the Costa Rican excursion will be reflected during game time.

The UW-Platteville Women’s soccer 2014 season has gotten off to a mediocre start with a 2-2 record. The most recent games were played away against Principia College and Fontboon University. The Principia game resulted in a 2-0 win aided by one goal and one assist from junior, Julie Devita. The game against Fontboone University, ended with a 1-0 loss.

“So far we have played some really good teams,” Harms said. “The games that we have lost, I think, are the result of a communication collapse.”

Harms, who has played on the team all four years during her time at UW-Platteville, said that this year’s team is rather young compared to past seasons with a roster consisting of 27 players and only ten of those being juniors or seniors.

For now, the team will focus on game fundamentals during their usual high-intensity practices prior to game days.

Specifically, when it comes to what the team will strive to do better, both Harms and Hughes take a similar approach in that the offense needs to become more confident in their abilities.

“Offense has a tendency to pass. We need to learn to be more selfish,” Harms said. “We need to recognize that if we have a shot we need to take it.”

The UW-Platteville Women’s soccer team will take on Lakeland College at home on Monday, Aug. 15 at 5:00 p.m.