Garner girls soccer bests West Johnston in a GNRC shootout
Kiara De La Torre has just two goals for Garner this season, and the one she scored on Wednesday night may have been the Trojans’ biggest of the year.
The sophomore midfielder scored from 18 yards out in the 75th minute on a pass from Grace Bondurant, giving Garner a 6-5 girls’ soccer victory over Greater Neuse River 4A foe West Johnston. And it completed a spectacular night for Bondurant, who tacked on the assist after recording a three-goal hat trick.
West junior Robin Pollard also had a hat trick.
Kasey Adams added a pair of goals for Garner, while the Trojans’ Sarah Dancausse had three assists.
“We knew what to expect,” said Garner coach Jennifer Enyeart, whose team improved to 5-5, 5-0 in conference play. “West Johnston is always a tough team and this was an even game back-and-forth. There were a lot of quick goals. The girls didn’t give up, and we executed what we’ve been working on in practice.”
Victoria Thomas and Jenna Tomlinson scored the other goals for West Johnston (6-3-1, 3-2).
De La Torre’s tally came at the end of a wild game in which the Trojans had gone ahead by one goal five times with the Wildcats answering every time.
“It was all a team contribution,” De La Torre said. “Grace got me the ball in a perfect place for my goal, and I knew she would. It was a great win.”
Turning point
De La Torre’s go-ahead goal.
They said it
“That was the best game we’ve played all season,” said West coach Luke Waddell, who also coaches the Wildcat boys’ team and is in his first season as girls’ coach. “That sums it up. I am unbelievably proud of the way we played. There were good sequences all over the field.”
Three who mattered
Grace Bondurant, Garner: The junior forward had three goals and an assist to lead the Trojans’ scoring.
“My teammates, especially Sarah, really did a good job getting me the ball in good spots,” Bondurant said. “I only score because the other players to their part. I think we played pretty well overall tonight.”
Robin Pollard, West Johnston: The junior forward had a hat trick including a pair of second-half goals in the defeat.
“Coming into this game we knew it would be a really tough game,” said Pollard, who has already committed to UNLV. “Garner is a rival and it’s always a good matchup, and we played a really strong game tonight.”
Sarah Dancausse, Garner: The senior captain had three assists, including the helpers on Bondurant’s first two goals.
By the numbers
6: Goals for Adams this season.
17: Seconds between Tomlinson’s goal to pull West even at 3-3 and Adams’ second goal of the game to give Garner the lead again.
17: Goals for Bondurant this season.
31: Goals for Pollard this season, all but 12 of the Wildcats’ goals.
160: The span of seconds in which the teams combined for the first four goals of the game.
Looking ahead
Garner was scheduled to play at Clayton, which was also unbeaten in conference play, on Friday night.
West hosts Knightdale on Monday night.
This story was originally published April 7, 2016 at 2:06 AM with the headline "Garner girls soccer bests West Johnston in a GNRC shootout."