On a hot, rain-starved soccer pitch, players from Vicksburg High and Warren Central go to work.

They fly around the field, unleashing more shots in the first part of this scrimmage than they might take in a full game against each other six months from now. When the furious action comes to a close following a blisteringly fast 30-minute half, the next wave takes over and repeats the process.

This game is nothing like the grinding contests of the high school season. Then again, that’s the point.

For the first time, all three of Warren County’s girls high school soccer teams — Warren Central, Vicksburg and St. Aloysius — are playing a full summer schedule. Their 7-on-7 scrimmages are played on a field two-thirds the size of a normal one and designed with offense in mind, allowing players to work on ballhandling skills and shooting.

“I have quite a few who have never played before. Being able to get out here and teach them in a game-like environment, I think has been helpful for them,” Vicksburg coach Kori Babb said. “I had players on the field who were clueless what to do. Now, the more they watch, the more they play, they’re starting to move and figure things out. I think it’s helped the weaker ones more than the stronger ones.”

St. Al coach Suzie Channell said the constant flow of the 7-on-7 game allows every player on the field to work on their passing and get more comfortable moving the ball.

“The players that play defense get to make runs and come from the back,” Channell said. “In 7-on-7 you have to play. You drive and pass more and work on your touches.”

Although an offensive mindest certainly dominates these summer scrimmages, Babb added that it’s also a good chance to work on defense. Goal keepers get to see — and, hopefully, learn to stop — shots from all angles and defenders can work on the proper angles to take to break up runs.

“You’ve got your longer shots. People like Raven Lawrence or (Tabitha Hayden) who can shoot from way back. You didn’t have that in 11-on-11. It definitely gives the goal keepers more touches,” Babb said.

In past years, summer soccer was rare. Except for a few workouts and an occasional scrimmage, most high school teams disbanded when the season ended in February. The more skilled players went on to play for their select teams and others largely gave up the sport until the next high school season began in October.

This year, Warren County’s coaches decided to change that. They arranged a series of scrimmages against each other and also participated in a couple of tournaments against Jackson-area teams. It’s all an effort to build both the skill level of their players and team cohesion.

“This year I jumped into it because I don’t have enough girls playing soccer outside of high school,” Babb said. “In order to keep the team playing together and just keep them playing, I figured this would be the best way.”

Each team has played about a dozen games. WC and Vicksburg meet again on Thursday, and will finish the schedule with a round-robin tournament against Northwest Rankin and Ridgeland on July 19 at WC.

“Recreational and select ends at the end of May or early June, so they’re not doing anything until August comes around. It’s just keeping them out here, keeping them conditioned and getting their touches on the ball,” Warren Central coach Trey Banks said.

Although playing a high-tempo game in 90-degree weather can be taxing, players said they enjoy it.

“I love it. Everybody gets more playing time. Everybody plays different positions and you can see how they play. It’s going to help us a lot,” WC junior defender Hannah Miller said. “It’s way more scoring. In regular soccer it’s more competitive. It’s way more fun.”

That was a sentiment Banks was glad to hear. As much as he wants to see the Lady Vikes improve their skills, a bigger goal is to build team chemistry — a goal they’re succeeding at, he said.

“The girls enjoy it, and if the girls enjoy it I enjoy it. If they’re out here and wanting to be out here, then I know they want to be on the team and are enjoying getting better. And that’s our goal, is to get better as a team and compete for the district title,” Banks said.