ELIZABETHTOWN – Senior Maya McDonald posted a ‘Hat Trick’ of 3 goals Thursday night as East Bladen rolled to a 9-0 non-conference girls soccer victory over Heide Trask. Sophomore Heidi Rebollar scored 2 goals for the winners.
McDonald opened the scoring in the 2nd minute, dribbling the backline and firing a low shot past the keeper. In the 15th minute, McDonald was taken down by the Trask goalkeeper as she broke to the goal in a 1-on-1 situation. The Lady Eagles were awarded a penalty kick that Rebollar blasted in for a 2-0 lead.
Fifty seconds later freshman Iveonna “NeNe” Ward pounced on a loose ball and banged it into the net for a 3-0 lead. In the 20th minute, Rebollar received a pass and beat several defenders before drilling in a shot from 14 yards out for a 4-0 lead.
McDonald re-entered the game and converted a pass from junior Acee Campbell into a goal in the 26th minute. Two minutes later McDonald took a throw-in from junior Cydney Campbell, and according to Coach Jay Raynor, “beat 2 defenders with some shifty moves before finishing a shot with her left foot.”
East Bladen led 6-0 at halftime and outshot the Lady Titans 15-0 in the 1st half. In the 52nd minute, freshman Jackie Medina-Leal beat her defender and curled a right-footed shot past the keeper.
Sophomore McKenzie Storms sent a pass to freshman Laila Smith to set up the 8th Lady Eagle goal. “Laila used her speed and a nice move to score past the keeper from 7 yards out,” said Raynor.
Freshman Anna Miranda ended the match on the mercy rule with a goal in the 64th minute. Miranda took a pass from sophomore Reese Hester, cut to her right and knocked in the shot from 25 yards out.
“The girls played well today and this week,” noted Raynor. “They played hard for each other. I thought we were locked in and didn’t let things like the weather or mistakes get to us.”
Hester and junior Ashlyn Williams combined for the shutout in goal.
“The girls are getting better each time out,” shared Raynor. “They have been able to score early and score in bunches. They are flying around and making plays. I thought we were very unselfish and really enjoyed seeing each other be successful.”
Raynor continued, “We are getting a better understanding of how we want to play. Still have to figure out rotations, sub patterns, and the best lineup. We are getting a lot of girls minutes and everyone is contributing.”
“Need to clean some things up like our fitness and understanding the system,” concluded Raynor. “At times you can see us thinking rather than feeling/knowing the game. We over complicate things and make it difficult on ourselves at times. That will hopefully get better the more time we get under our belt on the field.”
The Lady Eagles, now 2-0, will host West Bladen Tuesday at 6 p.m. in their Southeastern Athletic Conference opener.
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