Spier notches hat trick, CBA turns back county foe

By Justin Hayes
Published in Sports on April 14, 2016 1:48 PM

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PIKEVILLE -- Uninspired gets you the door.

In a hurry.

The Eastern Wayne varsity girls' soccer team learned such Wednesday evening, opening in lethargic fashion and ultimately falling to county rival Charles B. Aycock, 3-1, in a spirited matchup of Eastern Carolina Conference 3-A/4-A rivals.

It was the third consecutive loss for the Warriors, who fell to 3-6-2 overall and 1-4-0 in the conference.

EW's backfield was nonchalant early, allowing Aycock forward Hannah Spier ample spells of air and opportunity in the match's opening 20 minutes.

Too nonchalant.

The freshman, who now has 13 goals on the season, replied with her trademark brand of speedy aggression. And the results -- a hat trick (three goals) -- added up in a hurry.

She fired two shots on goal within 60 seconds of kickoff.

She scored on a header in the seventh minute, courtesy of a Sabrina Johnson corner kick. Then there was the left-footer, scored in the 17th minute, on a brilliant cross by junior Emily Seguin.

And finally, a 34th-minute blast in the corner net, again sponsored by a timely drop from Johnson.

The assault, offset by a 21st-minute goal from Eastern Wayne's Claire Molloy, was one lamented by Warriors head coach Scott Summers.

"We came out flat," Summers noted, "and let Aycock set the tone. We have to come out wanting it more than them. (We have to) have a sense of urgency."

In the second half, they showed one.

Brennan Dove, the subject of a concentrated defensive effort by Aycock, was nothing short of brilliant. The junior guided Eastern Wayne through a controlled second period, holding a relentless Golden Falcon attack scoreless over the final 40 minutes.

For Summers, who delivered an animated halftime speech, the performance was a welcomed sight.

"We had to wake up," he recalled, "they have to talk to each other. Go as hard as you can... 150 percent."

It was too late, however. Spier's first-half performance -- as well as Aycock's defense of Dove and Molloy -- created a deficit too large to overcome.

"Every team has (someone) to make them go," CBA coach Byron Adkins said of Dove, "and we tried to shape around her, deny the service... make it difficult."

The strategy, simple at its core, worked.

Aycock, now 7-4-0 and 3-3-0 in the ECC, travels to Goldsboro today. Eastern Wayne, seeking a quicker start, travels to Winterville for an ECC clash with South Central.