Sharks Chomp Hornets in District Final

The Nature Coast Sharks (11-6) defeated the Weeki Wachee Hornets (7-7-2) by a 7-1 margin in the 2024 Girls Soccer District Tournament – 4A District 6 final on Tuesday night. The visiting Hornets held firm early, but the Sharks began scoring in bunches as the game wore on. Senior Hailee Wegner was named Player of the Game on Maxpreps, but Nature Coast Head Coach Amy Mainella felt that all of her athletes deserved praise for her team’s victory.

“Everyone contributes,” said Coach Mainella. “It is really a team effort. That is where our team really stands out. You will see in the stats, too, we do not have one player that is really standout in the goals. It is everyone’s job to put it in the back of the net. It is everyone’s job to defend. That is what I really preach to the girls. I love the team effort and they get along so well together. It is really refreshing. It is nice.”

The stats really do tell the tale as the team’s seven goals were split between 5 different players. Wegner and Senior Jaiden Gilbert both logged two apiece while Freshman Hayden Bleser, Sophomore Giada Chechile, and Senior Victoria Mainella all scored once. The Green and Black hung tough for much of the first half thanks to strong play by Freshman goalkeeper Gianna Grinnell early. Though no scores were going into the net, Nature Coast was spending a great deal of time on the visitors’ side of the field in the first 20 minutes. Near the midway point of the frame, multiple Sharks nearly scored off of a corner kick by Sophomore Ava Ferlita.

The Hornets’ goalie saved those scoring opportunities from going in, but the onslaught would prove to be simply too much. Seconds before the mid-half water break, Gilbert received a deep pass down the field, took it past Grinnell, and shot the ball into the open goal. After the brief intermission, the home team did not slow down. Hailee Wegner earned her Player of the Game Award following another quick goal by the Sharks.

Roughly three minutes before and after half, Wegner fired a couple of shots past Grinnell to give Nature Coast the commanding 4-0 advantage. The first goal saw the senior take a pass down the middle of the field and kick it into the right side of the net. The keeper caught a piece of the ball but only enough to slow it down. The second went just over Grinnell’s head as Wegner iced the game. Five and a half minutes later, Gilbert would punch in her second score as it became a matter of how much the Sharks would score that night. The Hornets would get on the board minutes later by way of Senior Jillian Aldrich, but it was only enough to avoid the shutout in a 7-1 district final shellacking.

“We have preached all season being a team, working together, and it really showed on the film tonight,” Coach Mainella said. “Everyone counts on everyone and as a team, as a whole, they are there for each other. What I think it shows on the field, they work for each other.”

While Weeki Wachee’s season is over, the Sharks will advance and compete in the first round of the regional tournament. Coach Mainella and company do not yet know who they will be facing, but they will find out who will be placed in their bracket at 2:00 PM on Friday.

Weeki Wachee at Nature Coast Girls Soccer

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