03/29/2024
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LAURINBURG – East Bladen rallied with 3 goals in the second half to defeat Scotland 3-1 Friday night in non-conference girls soccer action.

Scotland led 1-0 at halftime and had outshot the Eagles 6-3. “They seemed to beat us to every ball and had much more energy than we did.,” said East Bladen Coach Jay Raynor. “Our backline of Izzy (Smith), Sarah Johnson, and Ashton (Magby) plus goalie Ting Lin did a tremendous job of keeping them out of the net. It seemed like they had wave after wave of attacks on goal.”

Scotland’s goal came off a handball from 25 yards out on the left side. “The girl hit a looping ball that was just out of the reach of Ting,” stated Raynor. “She did all she could do.”

“We made a small adjustment at half and pulled our 11 closer to our 9 up top,” said Raynor. “We wanted to run at them on the right side and force the 2 center backs to pick up the 9 or 11. We knew one of them would be free and was going to be the one off the ball. That paid dividends in the second half.”

The strategy paid off 4 minutes into the second half. Senior Hannah Devane who was in the 9 position picked up a ball in the midfield. Kenia Medina (the 11) cleared space just as Hannah broke for the ball.

“That pulled a defender out and left Hannah 1 on 1 and she beat her and hit a rocket from 20-plus yards out,” said Coach Raynor. “As soon as it left her foot you knew it was a goal -one heck of a goal at that.”

“The girls started flying around and making plays that we just didn’t in the first half.,” continued Raynor. “All of a sudden the energy had us focused and the game became so much easier for the girls at that moment.”

Devane found freshman Katie Evans down the left side. Evans beat the right back and then the keeper with a low hard shot in the lower corner of the goal in the 66th minute.

The Eagles won the ball back after the kickoff, and Medina beat two players to find herself with a shot from 25 yards out. “She blasted a curling shot past the keeper in the 69th minute,” said Raynor. “It was a ridiculous shot! Another one that you knew was going to find the back of the net the way it jumped off her foot.”

“This was another big win for these girls,” added Raynor. “They continue to grow every game. We have experienced some adversity lately and it’s so cool to watch how they respond. They wanted it and left it all on the field.”

“Everyone of them deserve a pat on the back,” continued Raynor. “Hannah showed why she’s a captain. She responded and pumped the girls up. In tough times she comes up with some big plays and some big goals. Her goal really helped us turn it up tonight. Kenia, Katie, Sara Gargala, Patience Ward – they gave it all they had.”

Raynor added, “I was super proud of Cybil (Campbell) and Gracyn (Martin). They both are in the trenches in midfield. They both were hurting but pushed through and played one of the best games I have seen them play.”

Lin was credited with 5 saves. East Bladen outshot Scotland 17-9.

The Lady Eagles ran their unbeaten record to 13-0. East Bladen will travel to West Columbus Tuesday at 5 p.m.

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