The Sharks are district champions! On Thursday, the Nature Coast Tech Sharks (12-5-2) dominated the Hernando Leopards (9-11-1) in a 4-0 shutout to take the girls’ 4A District 5 title at home. Head Coach Amy Mainella’s squad controlled the game from start to finish and nearly won by several more scores.
“We came out strong,” Coach Mainella said. “We are trying to work together […] I emphasize teamwork. We all work as a team. We are all one as a team on the field […] The girls have played really well this year. Strong team, strong defense. We are looking forward to regionals.”
The home team certainly came out strong to open the matchup. Roughly four minutes into the district final, Senior Reese Monroe took a pass from Junior Giada Chechile and rifled the ball into the back right corner of the goal.
The next 53 minutes of game time would see Nature Coast attempt a flurry of shots which nearly made their way into the net. So close yet so far.
Add in a pair of premium scoring opportunities that were foiled by a duo of questionable calls by the officials, and you had a night that felt like a blowout despite the Sharks only leading by one.
This would all change in the second half. Nearly three quarters of the way throughout the night, the floodgates finally burst open as Sophomore Hayden Bleser fired a shot just inside the right side of the net for the score.
Once Bleser managed to put her team on the board again, it would not take her long to find another scoring opportunity just four and a half minutes later. She would corral a teammate’s shot that had been kicked away and immediately fired it right back into the goal for the 3-0 lead.
While that would bring an end to the scoring, there was a moment of intrigue when, with only seconds left, Bleser nearly logged a hat trick off a late corner kick. Though she did not score, her near miss highlighted her strong night on the pitch.
Despite Bleser and Chechile’s performances, Coach Mainella emphasized that the team’s success has ultimately been due to every member’s contributions. “Even though, Hayden and Giada, they have great scores and games where they have had hat tricks and goals, it is a whole team effort.”
Despite falling short in the championship, Head Coach David Shrader’s Leopards enjoyed a solid season and a district title game appearance. As he noted following his team’s final game of the regular season, Hernando has a senior laden squad “that never quit playing no matter the score,” and that was certainly the case on Thursday night.
As for the Sharks, they are moving on. Regarding potential adjustments following her team’s performance in districts, Coach Mainella noted that, “We’ll look at some film and then we’ll address that.” Next up – regionals.