Durham’s hat trick fuels Watauga WSOC vs. Alexander Central, 5-1

April 30, 2024

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You can barely see Katie Durham in this photo, but she is responsible for the ball zipping past the goalkeeper and headed to the back of the net for her third goal on April 30, in the Pioneers' 5-1 win over Alexander Central. Photographic image by David Rogers for High Country Sports

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — A lightening delay of over one hour didn’t faze Watauga forward Katie Durham and her Pioneer teammates on April 30.

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Charlotte Cuthbert scored Watauga’s early goal and Morgan Flynt punched in the second after Alexander Central tied the game with a penalty kick early in the final period. Against what appeared to be a massively stacked defense with as many as nine Cougar defenders in the box, Durham didn’t find the back of the net until midway through the final period. Then it all but rained goals by the senior forward as she deftly picked apart the Cougars’ defensive strategy.

In part because of Alexander Central’s decision to stack the defensive box against the high-scoring Pioneers, Watauga nonetheless dominated possession and skillfully moved the ball with short, one- and two-touch passes.

Now 13-1-1 overall and 6-0-1 in Northwestern Conference play, Watauga next travels to Hibriten for a May 3 rematch with the Panthers. Ranked by MaxPreps as the No. 5 best team in the NCHSAA 4A West region and No. 18 in the state among all classifications, Watauga will face a Hibriten team that is ranked No. 22 in the state and No. 1 in the NCHSAA 3A rankings. Last time out, in Boone, the teams battled to a 1-1 draw in a match marred by an early, red card to a Watauga player, which required the Pioneers to play shorthanded for the rest of the contest.

In looking ahead to the upcoming Hibriten match, Durham explained that it will be a challenge in that the Panthers’ field is one of the smallest in the conference and very uneven.

“That can work for us as well as against us,” said Durham. “Hibriten is very well coached, especially defensively, so it will definitely be a challenge.”

For the April 30 match vs. Alexander Central, sophomore Hannah Graham was promoted to varsity after a dynamic junior varsity season that saw her scoring as many as four and five goals per game.

“Hannah clearly deserves being brought up. Our JV team has had a terrific season. No one has scored a goal against them this season and that is reflected in their undefeated, 7-0 record,” said Watauga head coach Chris Tarnowski. “Hannah has been a big part of that success.”

“Playing on the JV team really helped me develop,” Graham noted. “It helped me prepare for this next challenge.”