Another one for record books

MT. PLEASANT — At East Lake Park Monday, a Southeast Conference boys soccer match meant a little more to two participants than others.

Washington head coach Sally Hart played for the Panthers and graduated from Mt. Pleasant before playing the sport in college. Demons senior Zac Stout needed a goal to break his tie with Mason Quigley and become the career Demons record holder for goals. He got two in a 3-0 victory over Mt. Pleasant.

As the coach of a rival, Hart often was razzed by high school friends. Now she can do the razzing after a season sweep of her alma mater.

Hart achieved her first victory since 2007 on the field she initially played on in peewee soccer. Her previous win at East Lake was when her Monmouth team defeated Iowa Wesleyan.

The sixth-year Demon coach had a lot of memories and the feeling of a win 14 years in the making?

“It was overdue,” she said.

Stout wasted little time securing the title of best Demon goal scorer when he got a pass from Emanuel Raymundo and netted the ball with the match barely past 2 minutes old.

“I got a good pass and the goalie came out so I just hit with my left into the corner,” Stout said.

Erick Ortez made it 2-0 less than 2 minutes later when he ran down a pass from Adin Muff and notched a goal.

With the first half 19 minutes gone, Noah Suchan‘s free kick from the corner “was perfectly placed to me.” It ricocheted off of Stout’s head into the net for the 30th goal of his career and the 26th of the season. Mason Quigley’s season record of 12 was smashed when Stout got a hat trick for 13 on the season in the home match against Mt. Pleasant, the sixth game of the year.

As the career record holder, it just “means somebody else has to be better than me in the future,” Stout said. “Mason was amazing as an athlete. I remember watching him as a kid and wanting to be like him. It feels good to pass somebody that talented.”

The second half was played on the Demons side of the field and keeper Cole Anderson touched the ball a single time. Washington had 55 shots, 42 on goal and 10 corner kicks.

Sally Hayes Hart won her last game on this field as a Mt. Pleasant senior, a playoff match.

“If I could count the hours I have spent out here at this park, I’d be counting a long time between the practices, games, reffing and coaching,” Hart said. “It’s nice to be home. It’s fun to see the hills and lake we used to run and not have to run them. It is a lot of nostalgia.”

Washington is 7-4 overall, 6-3 SEC and play at Columbus (7-4) Thursday. The Panthers are 2-10, 2-7 SEC and play at top-ranked Notre Dame Monday.