"Age is just a number" is an old adage the Lady Cosmos prove each time they take the pitch.

The local club soccer team takes on all-comers, despite many times competing against players with 2-3 years of added experience.

The restraints didn’t seem to bother the Lady Cosmos over Memorial Day weekend, when the team advanced to the semifinals in the TN State Cup tournament.

“We constantly have to combine age groups to make teams and that puts us at a disadvantage to most other competitive club teams who have groups with all one age group,” said Lady Cosmos coach Myra Jackson. “We had a good run. They have an insatiable desire to win and that is how we have gotten so far.”

It seemed to pay off this season.

In their first year competing in the TN State League, the Lady Cosmos finished third in a high-powered league featuring teams from all across the state. Jackson entered the group, which has been playing together since 2014, forward in the 2003 age bracket, despite only having three players who were relegated to the bracket.

Jackson’s 17-player roster consisted of Jessi Alvarez, Sami Anderson, Bailey Bundy, Jessica Chastain, Claire Colvard, Ella Colvard, Journey Cowan, Molly Dodd, Savanna Duggin, Bekah Jackson, Alondra Parada, Shelby Roberts, Hailey Simpson, Caroline Stiles, Natalie Stepien, Katie Toney and Carmen Verdel.

The majority of the team was forced to play at a higher level, something Jackson believes made her team better as the season went along.

“Most of our girls always have to play an age group, or two, up. It’s taught the girls the discipline of hard work – we have to put in harder work than the older teams we play,” said Jackson. “My girls may not be as big or as old as our opponents, but we always are the team that works the hardest and never gives up.”

In the tournament, the Lady Cosmos matched up against NUSA from Nashville. After falling behind 2-0 by halftime, the Lady Cosmos rallied to tie the game late in the second half.

Just as the momentum was swinging toward the Lady Cosmos, the game was paused as a weather delay forced both teams off the field. When play resumed, a refreshed NUSA scored in the final five minutes to prevail.

“I think the weather delay worked in their favor. They were tired and we were wearing them down with our persistent attack,” said Jackson. “Our team is very fit. We had worked on fitness heavily in the last month because I knew that could be the difference between winning and losing.”

The loss may have been a downer at the end, but the Lady Cosmos proved their mettle around the state.