This past weekend, the North Carolina Soccer Coaches Association released its latest weekly women's 1A soccer poll, and the Avery Lady Vikings have moved up one spot from second to the top ranking in the state.No Avery sports team in recent memory has ever reached a #1 ranking in the state, illustrating the rarity and great accomplishment for the Lady Vikings, who have reeled off nine straight wins to begin this season.
Avery switched positions in the poll with the NC School of Science and Math, who lost 2-0 to Carrboro this week for its first loss of 2010.
“I am proud of what these girls have accomplished thus far this season. They have achieved several things that surpass even the best teams from the past, and this is still what I consider a “young” team with only two seniors on it,” Lady Vikings head soccer coach Tom Evaul said after the rankings were released. “The ranking is just another one of those outstanding accomplishments by these athletes, and all the credit goes to them.”
Although the ranking is a great accomplishment, the team still has goals it wishes to attain and do not want the notoriety to deter them from its ultimate goal of a state championship.
“The pressure is really on them if they want to maintain that ranking. That means they can't afford to have a single let down in any game of the 11 left this season, and I know of at least three teams that are going to be gunning hard for us,” Coach Evaul stated. “It becomes irrelevant to be ranked #1 in the state if you go and blow the season losing out early in the state playoffs. The ranking should serve as a motivation for the girls to continue doing what they are doing, but improving with each practice and each game. If we peak this early, then a conference championship becomes only a dream.”
Despite the stress that comes with such high expectations, Coach Evaul believes this team can shoulder the burden and go further than any club in school history has before.
“We can't take any team lightly from here on out despite the things we hear and know about them. Instead, we have to take each game and work on the parts of each girl’s individual skills as well as how they combine those with their teammates to get better and stronger both physically and mentally,” Coach Evaul said.
“Goliath looked past and over David and his pride and arrogance brought him down by the least of his enemies, so you can never look over any opponent. The girls have worked hard in practice and maintain a positive, determined attitude, they believe in themselves and their teammates, and as long as they continue building each other up and picking each other up when they falter, these girls are capable of anything they set their minds to.”
Coach Evaul also expressed his and the team’s appreciation for the support they have received this season.
“The coaching staff and I are extremely proud of this group of girls, and we thank God for allowing us to be a part of their lives,” the coach added. ”Each and every girl on this team is very special to us. We also would like to thank the fan support that we have had this season, as they are an important part of the success of these girls.”
The Lady Vikings had their first game since the new rankings when they hosted the Mitchell Lady Mountaineers on a clear and breezy Monday evening at MacDonald Stadium.
After more than a week without games, the Lady Vikings started slow out of the gate. There was a perceived lack of energy and the Mitchell Lady Mountaineers were beating the Lady Vikings to the ball.
Five Avery players spent the weekend competing with their club basketball and soccer teams and others were recovering from the abbreviated Spring Break. However, when Mitchell scored the first goal, the team realized that their brand-new number one ranking in the state was on the line.
The girls started to settle down, but it took the coaches taking out four starters at a time and talking to them about what was not happening and what needed to change to see a significant difference in the quality of play.
The Lady Mountaineers got on the board first when they were awarded a free kick about 25 yards out in the 6th minute. The kick by Blevins was well placed and out of Bentley’s reach as Mitchell led by an early 1-0 margin.
Less than a minute later, the Lady Vikings responded with a goal of their own when Mary Chesnut Smith got the ball at midfield and took it through the defenders, placing a shot out of reach of the keeper. Twelve minutes later, Emily Banner got the ball to Smith who again took the ball to the goal and got it behind the keeper for a 2-1 Avery lead.
The last goal of the first half was off a throw-in.
Katelynn Eudy put the ball in front of the goal where Melinda Eggers scored, making the first half score 3-1 at halftime.The Avery coaching staff continues their practice of letting the team discuss among themselves what went right in the first half and what they need to work on in the second half before they talked with the girls.
The Lady Vikings looked sharper in the second half, with some beautiful plays and another trio of goals.
In the 45th minute Avery earned a corner kick which Smith took, placing the ball in front of the goal and in the vicinity of Arden Stanley’s head who netted the goal.
Nine minutes later, Melinda Eggers dribbled the ball up the sideline and crossed the ball in to Banner who took the ball in close, made the keeper commit, and put the ball where she wasn’t to score Avery’s fifth goal.
After several runs towards goal, Eggers received a through-pass up the center from Smith and scored in the 74th minute for the sixth and final tally of the evening.
Every Lady Viking saw action on the field Monday evening, and head coach Tom Evaul was encouraged with how a number of the younger players on the team are progressing.
Fewer than ten percent of the shots taken by the Big Red scored. The Mitchell keeper was able to save ten shots. A total of six shots scored and 46 shots missed their mark. Mitchell took only five shots on goal, with keeper Mercedes Bentley recording two saves.
The win takes Avery to 9-0 on the season and 6-0 in
Avery will play two more home matches this week, playing Owen on Wed., April 14th at
Next week, the Lady Vikings take on the only conference team they have yet to play. Thomas Jefferson and Avery are tied at this point for the conference lead. The game will be on the road, and on Wednesday, April 21st the Lady Vikings will travel to
Avery Team Leaders (through 4/12/10):
Goals: Mary Chesnut Smith (15), Elyse Perry, Melinda Eggers, and Emily Banner (7 each), Arden
Assists: Emily Banner (14), Mary Chesnut Smith (13), Melinda Eggers (7), Katelynn Eudy (6)
(Special thanks to Serena Smith for statistical information and contributing to this report.)
