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Havelock’s Krystian Young (right) fights for a ball with Gray’s Creek’s Jennifer Floyd in Wednesday’s playoff game in Havelock.
Byron Holland/Sun Journal
Rams fall in first round
HAVELOCK - As she watched her players walk off the field for the final time Wednesday, the reality set in for Havelock girls soccer coach Kate Wernersbach. The season was over, and it was her duty to soften the blow.
"One thing about the girls on the team is that they always try their hardest and they never give up," Wernersbach said. "They always have that tenacity, and they don't accept less than their best. That's an admirable trait whether you win or lose."
The Havelock girls soccer team failed to pull of a win in the first round of the Class 3-A playoffs Wednesday. Gray's Creek scored a goal in the first two minutes of the game and some two hours later walked away with a 1-0 victory.
Although the loss was difficult for the players on the Havelock soccer team to accept, Wernersbach did her best to keep things in perspective.
"They played hard all season," she said. "It's hard because last season was such a great success. So I kind of felt a lot of pressure this season to make the playoffs again and to repeat some of the accomplishments we had last season. And I think we did a good job of matching what we did last season."
It did not take long for Gray's Creek to score the lone goal of the game. Just 1 minute, 48 seconds into the game, Taari Coleman put the Bears on the board.
Facing an unfamiliar opponent, Wernersbach thought her team might have gotten caught off guard.
"I think it was just kind of a surprise thing," she said. "We were out of position and they just popped one in."
Wernersbach had been tinkering with her defense all season, and the team looked sharp in that respect for the remainder of the game. Sophomore Alex Stout was solid in goal and sweeper Amanda West was doing her best to keep Gray's Creek off the board.
That mission was accomplished.
"Amanda has just done a spectacular job back there," Wernersbach said. "I put a little more speed back there. They've really been very solid. Unfortunately, when you play a decent team and make a mistake, you pay with a goal sometimes."
Havelock just couldn't find an answer for Gray's Creek's lone goal.
Senior Keri Gorman and sophomore Sarah Porter got two clean shots off on goal in the first half. Gorman's shot was launched from 20 yards out and bounced off the top of the goal post. Minutes later, Porter broke away and rocketed a ball toward the middle of the goal, directly into the arms of the Gray's Creek goalkeeper.
"Once we got into that groove and adjusted, we played better," Wernersbach said. "Sometimes in those first 10 minutes of the game, we've just been having trouble with starting strong."
Havelock also had several good looks in the second half, but failed to convert for a score.
"It was all about winning the ball. I don't think we won the ball enough," Wernersbach said. "We were laying off too much, we were waiting for them to get to the ball, and they had a couple of fast players."
The loss for Havelock marked the final game for seniors Catherine Burroughs, Bethany Dinger, Cleo Gore, Keri Gorman, Lauren Littrell, Autumn Palmer, Kelsey Shark and Krystian Young.
Havelock finished 12-8 on the season. For the second straight year, the Rams advanced out of the Coastal Conference to qualify for the state playoffs.
"I think that the program is headed for positive results in the future," Wernersbach said. "We hit a rocky patch in the middle of the season, but then we really rallied in the second half of the season. There are some things I wish we would have done better. But that's what's great about having another season to look forward to."
Jess Huffman can be reached at (252) 635-5669 or at jhuffman@freedomenc.com.
