by Chris Hunt and Aaron Burns

The Davidson Day girls soccer team recently extended its unbeaten streak to five games with a 10-0 rout of Gaston Day School. Forward Bri Wills had three more goals in the match to raise her season total to 49. She also has 13 assists this season.

With the win, the Patriots improved their record to 9-4-1 (3-0 in the Southern Piedmont Athletic Association).

“The season has gone well – basically what we expected,” said Davidson Day coach Chad Metzler. “We really challenged ourselves with the schedule to this point, and we have been doing well. All losses have been to 3A and 4A (public) schools.”

After a 2-1 victory on April 12 over Statesville Christian, which many see as the Patriots’ biggest challenger for the SPAA crown, a league title isn’t that far out of Davidson Day’s grasp. A conference championship would look nice in the school trophy case, as well as improve the Patriots’ N.C. Independent Schools Athletic Association 1A playoff resume.

“I think we are a favorite in both (the conference and state championship) races,” said Metzler. “That being said, there are a number of good teams, and as everyone knows about sports, anyone can win on any given day.”

Leading scorer Wills has contributed heavily to Davidson Day’s success this season, which includes a come-from-behind tie with Greensboro Day, the No. 5 team in the NCISAA 3A rankings. But unlike last season, when Wills scored 58 goals, the talented forward has plenty of help. Caitlyn Rodriguez (six goals, 21 assists), Max Foster (eight goals, 17 assists), Maria Woodrow (four goals, eight assists) and Maddy Clark (three goals, eight assists) have helped carry the offensive load.

“Everyone knows about Bri now,” said Metzler. “But other players have stepped up, and Bri has become more unselfish in her role. We’ve had 10 different players score this year – something that did not happen last year.

“(Freshman) Max Foster is, to this point, the second-leading scorer and third on assists. So in the area of keeping pressure on the other team from a different angle, Max has been a key. Maddy Clark and Caitlyn Rodriguez have stabilized the midfield and really allowed us to have control of tempo and pace in all but one game this season.”