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LaRue Campbell and the rest of the Lady Warriors opened the Region 7-AAA schedule Wednesday night with a trip to Gilmer County. The Lady Warriors, the No. 2 team in the latest Class AAA state poll, take on Dawson County next Tuesday in the first region home match. (Photos/Mark Turner) -
Senior Andrew Pierce had a pair of goals in the Warriors' wins over Elbert County and Kings Academy. The Warriors opened region play last night at Gilmer County.
The 2021 high school soccer season is off and running for the White County Warriors, and both the girls and boy's teams are garnering some statewide attention in the first three weeks of the season.
Since opening the season with a 3-1 loss to Jefferson, the No. 4 team in Class AAAA, the Lady Warriors have ripped off a string of five consecutive wins heading into the Region 7-AAA opener last night against Gilmer County.
The five-game winning streak has pushed the Lady Warriors up near the top of the latest Class AAA poll as they are ranked No. 2 on the Top 10 list on eurosportscoreboard.com.
The No. 2 ranking is the best-ever for the Lady Warrior program, with White County sitting behind only private school power Westminster in the weekly poll.
The rest of the Top 10 consists of Oconee County, Lumpkin County, Greater Atlanta Christian, Pike County, Mary Persons, Cherokee Bluff, Adairsville, and Jackson, in the 3rd through 10th spots, respectively. Lumpkin County and Cherokee Bluff are in Region 7-AAA along with the Lady Warriors.
WCHS is ranked third behind Westminster and Oconee County in the ScoreAtlanta/AJC state poll.
The Lady Warriors have flashed a high-powered offense during the winning streak, outscoring their opponents 41-2. In their last three wins over Pickens County, Elbert County, and King's Academy, the Lady Warriors rolled up a 27-1 advantage.
Last Friday, the Lady Warriors posted a 7-0 win over King's Academy, a private school from Cherokee County.
Leah Alexander, who leads the team with 12 goals this spring, and Hazen Ramey, who is second on the team with 11 goals, each recorded a hat trick, accounting for six of the team's seven goals.
Aubrey Dowdy had the other goal for the Lady Warriors. Nealeigh Broadwell had a pair of assists, while Ada Smith, Liz Williams, and Anna Tatum each had an assist.
The Lady Warriors knocked off Elbert County 9-0 earlier last week. The game lasted only 32 minutes as WCHS took a commanding 7-0 lead in the opening 12 minutes of the first half, with the team's heading to the locker room after the Lady Warriors' seventh goal.
The two teams played 20 minutes in the second half before WCHS ended things due to the mercy rule.
Alexander and Ramey each scored a pair of goals, while Madison Hunter had a goal and two assists. Smith and McKinley Jones each had a goal and an assist, and Liz Williams and Reese Vandegriff each scored a goal.
On Feb. 12, the Lady Warriors bashed Pickens County 11-1 in Cleveland.
Alexander posted another hat trick, finishing the match with three goals and an assist, with Smith, Jones, and Broadwell each scoring two goals, with Broadwell also handing out an assist.
Sydnee Nix and Ramey each had a goal, while Nix, Hunter and Adelynn Knight each had an assist.
On the boy's side, the Warriors are off to a 3-2 start, and had back-to-back wins last week to jump into the Class AAA Top 10.
The Warriors checked in at No. 8 in the ScoreAtlanta/AJC state poll and are No. 9 in this week's poll on eurosportscroreboard.com.
The Warriors posted wins over Elbert County (6-0) and King's Academy (4-0) to push their record over the .500 mark despite dealing with quarantine and injury issues.
In the win over Elbert County, the Warriors got three goals and an assist from Hayden Gensler to help put the Blue Devils away.
Andrew Pierce had two goals in the win, while Elliot Hicks scored once. Grayson Cathey and Thad Gensler each had an assist.
The Warriors posted their second straight shutout last Friday night, scoring four times in the first half on the way to a 4-0 win over King's Academy, a private school from Canton.
Pierce paced the effort with a pair of goals, while Hayden Gensler and Cohen Cantrell each scored a goal. Gensler had a pair of assists and Ian Sanchez also handed out an assist.
With the Warriors missing several key players in the lineup, the squad suffered their last loss on Feb. 12, dropping a 5-4 decision to Pickens County.
Elijah Crowe had a pair of goals, while Hayden Gensler and Cole Gearing each scored a goal. Crowe and Gensler each handed out an assist.