North Iredell/Statesville soccer notes

Here are a few notes from last night's game that I couldn't squeeze into my story.

North is a team that knows how to respond. Sarah Ann Waugh scored a goal 19 seconds into the game for Statesville, a high arcing shot from 20 yards away that really had no business going in. The Raiders scored two minutes later. When Statesville tied it 2-2 in the 52nd minute, North scored two goals in 90 seconds to take a 4-2 lead. While the Raiders can respond, they're going to have to shake off that Spring Break-rust against some of the upper echelon teams in the conference.

North's Ana Ramon scored late in the first half on a free kick. Ramon, with the ball a good 25 yards from the goal, drilled a high, bending shot that went into the net. Head coach Tim Watson said Ramon took advantage of the sun being in the goalie's face as well. Watson also told me Ramon has scored on 60 percent of her free kicks this year, which is just an outstanding number.

The Raiders play again on Wednesday against conference leader Lake Norman. Lake Norman is ranked No. 3 in the state for all public 3A soccer teams. After nearly defeating the Wildcats last year, North was on the receiving end of a 12-0 butt-kicking its first match with Lake Norman earlier this year. The team appears ready for another chance.

"We're all excited," Ramon said after the game. "It won't be a 12-0 loss this time. We want to at least try and tie them, hopefully beat them."