Ben Klein
Senior forward Rose McAtee (1) shoots and scores against West Delaware in the first half at Solon High School Thursday Apr. 16. Her six goals led Solon to a 10-0 mercy rule win.
With an emphatic 10-0 victory, Thursday night ’s performance was unforgettable for the Solon Spartans’ girls soccer team. For the West Delaware Hawks, it was a defeat they’ll hope to soon forget.
Senior forward Rose McAtee headlined the victory for the Spartans at Solon High School Spartan Stadium with an astonishing six goals, four coming in the first half alone.
“It felt good to score six,” said McAtee. “I just had to focus on composure and pick my head up.”
McAtee’s sixth goal was the final kick of the game, as the Spartans won by mercy-rule with 13 minutes remaining in the game.
It’s not every day that you see someone score six goals in one match, especially not at the varsity level.
“It was alright,” said Spartans’ Head Coach Amanda Paulson with a wry smile on her face when asked about McAtee’s performance. “It was her first game back after suffering a concussion earlier this season and it looked like she was excited to be back on the pitch.”
To add even more insanity to the Spartans’ score sheet, senior Addi Greene netted a hat trick of her own, while junior Sofia Ortega tallied four assists on the night.
After opening t he season 0-2, the Spartans have been on a tear recently. They’ve won three and had one draw in their last four matches, outscoring opponents 23-4 in that span.
“Having more time together has really helped us,” said Coach Paulson. “We’ve also switched formations, so getting the girls used to that has helped too.”
Three weeks into the season, Solon’s record sits at 3-2-1. The competition will get harder from here for the Spartans, however.
“We’re going to have to take the energy and excitement from tonight into next week,” said Paulson. “We have three huge games next week, all tough competition.”
This week Solon will play conference-rival Independence, Vinton- Shellsburg, and Iowa City Liberty. Independence and Iowa City Liberty are both ranked in the top-10 of their respective classes, and Vinton-Shellsburg sits atop their conference with a record of 3-3-1.
“All of us seniors have played together since fifth grade so we’ve had a lot of time playing together,” said McAtee. “I think we’re going to continue to turn things around and have a great season.”