With a minute left in a tie game, she dribbles down the field. This game is crucial – they’re fighting for first overall seeding right before the playoffs. She closes in and lets the ball fly.

Goal.

With senior Grishma Oomman’s tie-breaking goal, varsity girls soccer secured the top seed for the playoffs in the game against Heights High School on Jan. 28, 2023, of Oomman’s sophomore year.

Oomman, who has played soccer since she was 3, is the captain of the varsity girls soccer team.

“[The team] feels like a family,” Oomman said. “I’ve met some of my ride-or-dies through soccer. We have to rely on each other through really tough moments in games.”

Oomman played junior varsity soccer her freshman year, officially moving up to varsity her sophomore year.

“I felt excited, but I was also nervous because I wasn’t sure whether I’d be able to do what I needed to do on the field,” Oomman said. “There were some games where it was really frustrating because I wasn’t playing [well] and the team would fall apart.”

One of these difficult games was the second Bellaire vs. Lamar game during her sophomore year. With a nine-year winning streak against its biggest rival, Bellaire had high expectations going into the game.

“I felt so much pressure to play [well],” Oomman said. “Our confidence was shaking. To play a team and to get pummeled that badly takes a toll on you and I think that’s why it was one of the hardest games. We worked very hard, but in the end, we fell apart.”

In tough moments, like the 1-0 loss to Lamar, Oomman learned to look to her coach, Kelli Tomlinson, for soccer and life advice. While Tomlinson left Bellaire following the 2023-2024 school year, Oomman still cherishes the lessons Tomlinson taught her.

“I get better [when] I meet coaches that see potential in me,” Oomman said. “Coach Tomlinson [was] one of the best mentors I’ve ever had. [When she left] I felt like that was a huge loss.”

Oomman says she’s had a tough time adjusting to her new leadership position.

“It’s a lot of pressure because there’s a lot the captains do behind the scenes,” Oomman said. “[But] I’m getting into the groove a little bit. [The players] listen to me when we’re breaking out and they have respect for me as a captain.”

Oomman’s dad, Oomman Varghese, has always been one of her biggest supporters. Oomman says her father gives her feedback after every game he watches.

“[When Grishma started playing soccer], she was like a butterfly running around – she had no clue how to play,” Varghese said. “Slowly, she started showing interest in the [sport and] she has been consistently improving her skills.”

Varghese enjoys watching his daughter play and lead her team on the field.

“[In] tough games, when she makes a decision that works out, those moments are really enjoyable,” Varghese said. “I was very happy to see her [become captain] because she has leadership skills and social skills [that] go well with the team.”

Junior and co-captain Laila Hakki says collaborating with Oomman has been amazing. The two frequently work together to design drills and techniques to improve the team’s stamina, such as the new two to three-mile run the team completes weekly.

“Grish always puts the needs of the team before hers,” Hakki said. “This past week, she took it upon herself to stay at one of the rotations [of the game warm-ups] and teach the team different movements around cones in order for them to develop [more] skills.”

Hakki also admires Oomman for her dedication on the field.

“Whenever [Grish] sees the ball, she always goes for it right away,” Hakki said. “She [does] everything she can to score a goal or make a really good pass. She’s somebody that I can lean on for help, not only with soccer but [with] life in general.”

Oomman plans on playing intramural soccer when she heads to college due to the difficult balance of sports and academics. Varghese says he is confident that his daughter has the skills to play soccer for school; however, he supports her decision to move to intramural soccer. Oomman hopes that soccer will stay an integral part of her life.

“Bellaire soccer is extremely special [but it’s just] not in the cards for me to go to college for soccer,” Oomman said. “I enjoy getting to play with others and the competitiveness is what really pushes me to go out and play. [I] always want soccer to be a part of my life.”