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Lafayette forward Ella McAdams is the LCR’s Girls Soccer Player of the Year. (JACK HOWDESHELL/Special to the Reporter)
MAYO — On a Lafayette team with two established juniors and seniors, one of Ella McAdams’s main objectives entering this season as a sophomore was to earn those players’ confidence.
She did just that, plus more.
The forward finished with an area-best 33 goals, plus two assists, in leading the 12-6 Hornets to their third consecutive district title. The climax of the season was a heartbreaking 4-3 loss to University Christian in a thriller where McAdams contributed a goal and an assist in the Region 1-2A quarterfinals.
“That’s a game I’ll always remember,” McAdams said. “It was a hard game, and we needed every single goal we scored.”
For her efforts, she has been named the Lake City Reporter Girls Soccer Player of the Year.
“I’m very happy for her,” Lafayette coach Jessica Edwards said. “Being that she is a sophomore and earning that accolade already speaks a lot about her work ethic as a player.”
McAdams, in fact, made a concerted effort to turn the work ethic volume up to earn the respect of the older teammates like co-captains Kalia Dorsey and Kolby Newton.
“I think it’s been good because the older players know they can count on me,” McAdams said. “And I can count on them, so our relationship has been good.”
McAdams, who started playing soccer at 4 years old, already had a taste of varsity-level action when she was promoted there as a middle-schooler. In fact, it was around that time that she further developed what she described as an aggressive style of play, as a player who rarely backs off one-on-one battles for a loose ball.
“I was promoted to the varsity level when I was in seventh grade for districts,” McAdams recalled. “I was already playing JV, but I knew (the JV) level wasn’t as strong. When I was moved to varsity level, I realized I had to be (just as aggressive) as they were, with me going up against bigger and stronger kids. I was intimidated, but I knew I had to pull through.”
While her feisty style is an asset, Edwards is still teaching her to limit the fouls she draws during the flow of play.
“She can get a little physical, honestly,” Edwards said. “She wants the ball, and she will work to get it. I have to remind her you can’t use your arms (during a battle for the ball), you have to use her body.
“But she plays hard. She’s determined to get the ball. In games where she’s had maybe just one goal, sometimes two, I would need to pull her out because she would get reckless or I’d give her a break. She would always ask to come back in.”
Adams, nonetheless, has a strong foundation with her passing and the newly developed scoring skills. She actually started the season mostly playing wing and some center midfield before being moved to forward.
“I started off at midfield and wing and I’ve never played forward before,” McAdams said. “But that’s where I was most successful. I’m glad she moved me there.”
McAdams was a player who took pride in her passing that led to goals, rather than being the goal-scorer herself. Her game, however, evolved as a shot taker and goalscorer as the season progressed.
“I’ve never been one who did much of the scoring, I was always assisting,” McAdams said. “But then, I was moved forward, and that’s when the goals started to come.”
Despite her success as a prolific goalscorer, she’s mindful of the teammates who contributed to the passes that led to the goals.
“It was a pretty big transition for me, but it felt good, being able to score,” she said, adding, “and then it also changed the perspective. I know that the goals that are scored couldn’t have been done with whoever assisted me.”
McAdams said she plans to join the Naval Academy upon graduation to ultimately learn to conduct investigations and solve crimes.
For now, she gladly settles for solving and breaking down an opponents’ defensive schemes.
ALL-AREA TEAM
FW: Ella McAdams
Lafayette, sophomore
The LCR’s Player of the Year scored an area-best 33 goals and had two assists for the 12-6 Hornets, who won a third straight District 2-2A title.
FW: Savannah Creech
Branford, junior
Scored a team-best 20 goals and had five assists to help the 8-7-3 Buccaneers record their first season over .500.
FW: Zoe Bulock
Columbia, sophomore
Scored 12 goals and had five assists for the 9-4 Tigers.
MF: Mia Brasel
Columbia, junior
Led the Tigers with 14 goals and had five assists.
MF: Niki Sossie
Columbia, junior
Led the area with eight assists and scored six goals for the Tigers.
MF: Kalia Dorsey
Lafayette, senior
Scored 18 goals and had four assists for the Hornets’ high-powered offensive attack.
MF: Jean Paz-Garcia
Lafayette, sophomore
Scored 16 goals and had four assists as a key contributor in the Hornets’ midfield.
DEF: Lilly Schneider
Columbia, senior
Played center back and helped anchor a Tigers defense that allowed only 15 goals in 13 matches.
DEF: Kyndall Norris
Columbia, junior
Scored two goals and had an assist while playing center back for a stout Tigers defense.
DEF: Alaira Handy
Suwannee, sophomore
Did it all for the District 2-4A runner-up Bulldogs, anchoring their defense while also leading them offensively with 14 goals.
GK: Layla Merola
Suwannee, junior
Led the area with 197 saves, posted four shutouts, and helped the Bulldogs come away with two scoreless ties in the regular season.
COACH OF THE YEAR
Jessica Edwards, Lafayette
Led the Hornets to a 12-6 record and a third straight District 2-2A title in her first season. LHS made the playoffs for the fourth year in a row, falling to University Christian 4-3 in the Region 1-2A quarterfinals.
HONORABLE MENTION: Columbia: Penelope Wheeldon, Carla Medina-Rodriguez; Branford: Samantha Ray, Kayleigh Wardle, Emma Soride, Wren Wilkerson; Lafayette: Kylee Ann-Richards; Fort White: Anndersn Fuller, Marlee Hunt; Suwannee: Hannah Humphries
— All-area capsules by Sports Editor Jordan Kroeger