WARWICK — The record would suggest a forgettable season for the Toll Gate High girls soccer team.

The Titans enter their Senior Night festivities against Exeter/West Greenwich on Friday without a win. The Scarlet Knights represent one final chance for Toll Gate to break through.

That would have been the story line two weeks ago, anyway.

The new reality for the Titans is shuttling from practices and games to Hasbro Children’s Hospital in Providence, taking turns visiting the intensive care unit. Coaches, players and family members are keeping constant watch over a fallen teammate, junior goalkeeper Gianna Cirella, who is in a fight for her young life.

The 16-year-old’s eventual return to health would be the ultimate victory they all could share, from head coach Lonna Razza to Cirella’s younger sister, 14-year-old freshman striker Cassie. The most difficult of circumstances have seen a soccer team and a community demonstrate the best of human nature, from consolation offered by a rival to significant financial donations meant to offset rising health-care costs.

“I know they are going to take this season for what it is and what it was,” Razza said. “It’s going to be a growing experience for them as they go on later in life. I know this group of girls will never, ever, ever forget what they’ve endured this year.”

Gianna reported a sore throat at an Oct. 13 practice, and what Razza described as a “nightmare” unfolded over the next 72 hours. The illness progressed rapidly to pneumonia and then sepsis, a dangerous blood infection that can cause multiple vital organs to fail. Gianna was quickly admitted to the hospital, and Razza caught up on the details during a phone call with Gianna’s parents, Stanley and Tara, early last week.

“I couldn’t believe what I was hearing,” Razza said. “It was shocking — absolutely shocking — that it came on so quickly.”

Razza gave her team an update at a Wednesday morning meeting at school. Grief counselors were on hand to lend a necessary ear. The players were dismissed early from school, and reunited for pizza that night at a teammate’s home.

Razza arrived later in the evening with some business to discuss. The Titans were scheduled to play Pilgrim the following night, a match that suddenly took on much less significance than the typical city rivalry meeting. Warwick athletic director Ken Rix and Patriots coach Tom Flanders both offered the option of postponing or cancelling the game, and Razza left it for her players to decide.

Razza received a text message from her captains an hour later — the vote was unanimous. Toll Gate would meet Pilgrim on that Thursday night — and Cassie’s voice was one of the loudest in favor.

“She’s been a rock,” Razza said. “She’s being strong for her sister. She’s being strong for her parents.”

And sure enough, with the Patriots holding a 1-0 lead early in the second half, up popped Cassie to deliver an indelible memory. Her powerful header off an Alyssa Silvestre cross found the back of the net, Cassie’s first goal in almost a month, and there was little doubt as to whom it was dedicated.

“Of all nights, this was the night she scored that goal,” Razza said. “And it was for her sister. We all felt it. We all knew it.”

“I preach to my kids all the time that no matter what’s going on in your life, soccer, for me, has always been an escape,” Flanders said. “You could see that was her escape. She was in the moment and she was enjoying the moment, and she damn well deserved to enjoy it.”

There were hugs and tears shared in the postgame handshake line, after Pilgrim edged to a 2-1 victory. A match between two struggling teams had lifted both of them, and the feeling each had walking away was about more than a win or a loss.

“Kids never stop surprising me,” Rix said. “I’ve been teaching or coaching or an A.D. [athletic director] for 25 years, and I learn so much from the kids. They’re so strong.”

Teammates and opponents alike have worn ribbons and armbands in Gianna’s favorite color, purple, to honor her. An online fundraising page — gofundme.com/cirella-strong-medical-fund — had raised more than $64,000 through more than 1,000 donations as of Wednesday evening. Toll Gate’s players helped organize a blood drive, and more community events are in the process of being planned for Gianna, who was in critical but stable condition Wednesday night.

“They make me proud,” Razza said. “They should be proud of themselves. They’ve matured so much over these last couple weeks as individuals and as a team. It’s just really good to see and it makes me proud to say I’m their coach.”

- bkoch@providencejournal.com

On Twitter: @BillKoch25