Sports - May 2003

Lady Mustangs look for revenge against South Point

Published May 7, 2003

By JOHN MARK BROOKS, LTN Staff Writer

Coach Jason Dragoon has plenty to be happy about as his Lady Mustangs are on the verge of making the playoffs. The Mustangs are coming off an impressive win against conference foe East Gaston with a score of 6-0.

East is scheduled to play South Point today with high stakes on the line. It’s a simple scenario for them – if they win they will host the first round of the state playoffs next Wednesday. If they lose South Point earns the bid.

Coach Dragoon indicates that Mustangs revolve around the person and play of Krystle Kresge.

“She’s the heart and soul of our team. She is a great mid-fielder and does anything I ask of her,” he said.

Kresge, only a junior, has 14 assists and 8 goals on the year- giving her 22 total points.

Megan Hamilton, also a junior, is the main cog on defense for the team.

“She has really stepped up this year. As one of my captains she has played extremely good defense and continues to improve as she gets more soccer under her belt,” Dragoon said.

Consistency has been the calling card of junior Kathy Jones. She has been asked to play many positions on the field for East, but has responded well in each. Although, she does not have  gaudy statistics (three goals and two assists), coach Dragoon is very pleased with her play.

“She’s a very versatile player as she can play just about any position there is. She is far and away my most consistent player and is very easy to coach,” he said.

Dragoon and the team got a pleasant surprise when sophomore Erin Smith moved to North Carolina from Washington State. Smith, an Olympic Development player, has done it all for East Lincoln. She has 13 goals and six assists on the year. She also plays goalkeeper for the Mustangs half of the time.

“Out of 54 shots on goal – she has only given up three goals, earning two shutouts. She has been absolutely phenomenal between the pipes,” Dragoon said.

As one of his three captains senior Laura Yoder is the only player that has played East Lincoln soccer four years straight. This is her second year as a captain and  has provided much needed leadership for such a young squad.

“She’s just naturally a very good leader. She is extremely dedicated to the sport both in and out of season. She’s taught the younger players what it means to be a leader,” her coach said.

Coming into this season, Dragoon said he felt like if they were going to be successful that sophomore Jennifer Redman would really have to come up big. She’s done exactly that, working hard on the practice field and in the game.

 “She’s played phenomenal soccer lately – she’s really gone the extra mile for me.”

The Lady Mustangs have a little extra incentive going into the game with South Point. Last year, in a similar situation the Lady Red Raiders beat them 2-0 to prevent East from making the playoffs. This year they hope the result will be different.

“We really want to enact some revenge. All you can ask for as a team is the chance to control your own destiny – that is exactly what we have,” Dragoon said.

© 2001 Lincoln Times-News  

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