ELIZABETHTOWN- Junior Maya McDonald lit up the scoreboard with a career-high 7 goals – a double ‘Hat Trick’ plus one – as East Bladen rolled to a 9-0 Three Rivers Conference girls’ soccer victory over West Columbus Monday night.
McDonald set a new East Bladen school record with the 7 goals that broke her own record of 6 that she scored against St. Pauls on April 7th. The 7 goals tied McDonald for the 13th most in NCHSAA history for a single game. McDonald also broke Greyson Heustess’ all-time East Bladen career school record for girls and boys soccer of 80 goals when she scored her 81st and final goal in Monday’s game.
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Photos by Kenneth Armstrong
“Maya had an unbelievable night,” said Lady Eagle Coach Jay Raynor. “Her goals were the result of everyone moving the ball and playing good soccer. There were a few plays where she had to muscle through or past their backline but for the most part she was combining with her teammates.”
McDonald also figured in the scoring of the 1st two East Bladen goals as she sent assists to senior Joesphinia Torres who opened the Lady Eagle scoring with goals in the 6th minute and again in the 8th minute for an early 2-0 lead. “The chemistry between Maya and Joesphina was special as well as fun to watch,” noted Raynor.
Raynor continued, “The chemistry and passing tonight was the best it has been all year. We came out fast and were focused. Joesphina set the tone early. She grabbed two quick goals and worked hard to make them happen. Joesphina looked comfortable and made play after play tonight.”
In the 11th minute, McDonald turned a feed from senior Katie Evans into her 1st goal and a 3-0 East lead. Three minutes later Torres returned the favor with a pass that McDonald converted into her 2nd goal.
In the 19th minute, McDonald banged in a goal off of an assist from freshman Molly Evans to record her 1st ‘Hat Trick’ of the game. Katie Evans racked up her 2nd assist of the game with a feed that led to McDonald’s 4th goal and a 6-0 lead.
“Katie worked hard and made the game easy for the girls around her,” stated Raynor. “She picked up balls deep in the midfield and worked some combinations with the girls around her. Wish she would have been a little more aggressive and taken some shots, but she got it going for everyone else tonight.”
McDonald intercepted the Lady Viking kickoff and raced to the goal for her 5th goal of the night and a 7-0 East Bladen halftime lead. “Score line doesn’t reflect the team effort it was,” said Raynor. “We had a lot of looks and chances that we barely missed or couldn’t put away.”
One minute into the 2nd half the Torres-to-McDonald combination clicked again as McDonald knocked in her 6th goal off of Torres’ 2nd assist of the game. In the 44th minute senior Sara Gargala delivered an assist that led to McDonald’s final goal.
“The midfield of Katie, Sara, Reese (Hester), and Ashlyn (Williams) did magnificent jobs of getting the ball to our wingers and forwards,” said Raynor. “Acee (Campbell) and Cydney (Campbell) played extremely well in the flanks for us tonight. They are getting forward and getting some looks on goal. I was hoping they were going to put a few in net but they are putting shots on frame. They have grown tremendously this year.”
Raynor concluded, “Merritt (Martin) is doing a wonderful job of keeping us organized in the back. She communicates well and was vocal tonight. She has helped Zoe (Smith), Emma (McDuffie), Molly (Evans), and McKenzie (Storms) grow. Those ladies are getting better every time out. I thought everyone looked comfortable tonight. We came out strong and didn’t look back.”
East Bladen remains unbeaten at 4-0 in TRC play and 10-0 overall and now travels to Whiteville Wednesday for the game that should decide the top spot in the Three Rivers.
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