Soccer -- Second half good to Warriors

By Gabe Whisnant
Published in Sports on April 20, 2004 1:58 PM

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It seemed to take the Eastern Wayne girls soccer team one half of play at home against Kinston to shake off the rust of the week-long layoff of spring break, but the Lady Warriors made the necessary adjustments at halftime.

Eastern Wayne freshman Samantha Frazer came off of the bench to record a hat trick (three goals) in the second half as the Warriors emerged with a 5-0 win in the first game of the second half of the Class 3-A Eastern Carolina Conference schedule.

Frazer now has 11 goals at the midway point of her first season.

The victory improves Eastern Wayne (5-5 overall) to 5-3 against conference opposition as goalies Ashley Lish and Morgan Pritchett combined for their fifth shutout. Lish finished with six saves, while Pritchett added two.

Kinston (3-11-1 overall) dropped to 3-6 in the ECC.

Especially early in the first half, the Vikings played aggressively up front and put pressure on Lish and the Warrior defense.

A handful of missed assignments led to close shots, but each time Eastern Wayne dodged a bullet. The late stages of the first half and most of the second half proved to be a different story.

Senior Sarah Bacon and freshman reserve Tija Riley keyed the defense that held Kinston to two shots in the second half after yielding eight in the first.

"We were a little tentative and didn't communicate very well in the first half, and bad things happen when you do that," Eastern Wayne coach Jorg Wagner said. "In the second half, we made a point to correct that. Bacon in the back did a better job of bringing these guys out.

"We did a much better job in the air of winning headers as well."

After missing a handful of open chances near the goal and often struggling with the first touch in the first half, the Warriors also looked like a different team offensively in the second.

Midfielders Katy Biehl and Melissa Stansell played more aggressive and delivered the ball successfully up front to Natalie Taylor and Frazer.

Eastern Wayne's first goal of the second half came near the 38 minute mark.

Taylor dribbled nearly 30 yards before laying a pass off to her left to Frazer, who finished for her first goal. Nearly nine minutes later, Frazer scored on the left wing on a long pass from Riley, positioned near midfield.

Biehl struck on a follow shot from point-blank range with 16 minutes left before Frazer completed her hat-trick with a right-footed shot from the left wing at the five minute mark.

Taylor dished out the first of her two assists to Stansell with 13 minutes remaining in the first.

In two games, Eastern Wayne combined to outscore Kinston 13-0.

"I think if you beat a team relatively handily the first time around, it sits in your mind as a young player, 'maybe this time I don't have to work as hard to get the results,' " Wagner said. "Maybe that's a little of what happened today, but you've got to give them the youth card still."

Eastern Wayne travels to Washington on Wednesday.

Kinston 0 0 -- 0

E. Wayne 1 4 -- 5

First half

EW -- Stansell (Taylor assist), 13:22

Second half

EW -- Frazer (Taylor assist), 38:00

EW -- Frazer (Riley assist), 29:30

EW -- Biehl, 16:31

EW -- Frazer, 4:00

EW KHS

19 Shots 10

1 Corner kicks 0

6 Offsides 8

5 Fouls 5

Saves -- Lish (EW) 6, Pritchett (EW) 2. Gabby Irvin (KHS) 9.