12 I The Blue Banner I 9.28.2011
Soorts
JAKE
-K:
continued from page 10
sure to pick them up.
Hagedom spends as much time as possible de
voting himself to school and soccer to be the best
leader possible.
“I only live 45 minutes away, but I only go home
once or twice a semester. I could go home, but I
don’t have the time and it’s not that important to
me,” Hagedom said. “It’s my senior year and soccer
is everything right now because it’s my last year. I
just want to focus on having a good season with
the team and having a good time with the guys. Of
course things will change once it’s over, but right
now that is what’s most important.”
Hagedom has transformed as a player over the
past 4 years. He has been able to take command of
the game as he’s gotten into his junior and senior
year, Kem said. He’s always been very talented,
but as he has matured and gotten stronger. He now
has the ability not to only be a contributor or major
role player, but also an impact player.
Hagedom is one of three captains. He is a leader
by example and a leader by actions. The guys re
spect him not only as a soccer player, but as a stu
dent and person, Kem said.
“Being a Bulldog means hard work and focus,”
Hagedom said. “I’m thankful for the opportuni
ties that UNCA has provided for me as an student-
athlete and in return I think they should get all my
effort, time, focus and energy.”
Photo by Jackson Stahl
^ke Hagedom juggles
.honors Ciagses, practice, and
.weight lifting every day.
TEAM
continued from page 11
Runnin’ Bulldogs.
The Lady Bulldogs previously out
lasted Gardner-Webb in five sets on
Sept. 3 during a match at the 2011
Gamecock Invitational hosted in Co
lumbia, S.C., where UNCA also had
to win the final two sets to claim vic
tory.
Santos said he was impressed with
his team’s resilience and their ability
to come up with big plays in defining
moments.
“I’m very proud of our team to-
night,” he said. “The fifth set was wild
but we managed to make plays when
we absolutely had to have them.”
I Friday’s victory marked the second
straight win for the Lady Bulldogs
following a 3-0 dmbbing of N.C.
Central last Tuesday. Players said
Friday’s dramatic win could serve as
a launching pad as the team prepares
for the final stretch of the season with
13 of the remaining 14 matches com
ing against Big South Conference op
ponents.
“1 think our five set battle was defi
nitely a good starting place for con
ference play,” Miller said. “It shows
we won’t give up and we can fight
back when we are down. I think our
momentum can only keep increasing
as conference season continues.”
The team continues conference play
with a road-trip to Virginia, starting
Friday against Liberty and Saturday
against Radford, before returning for
a three-game home stand next Tues
day beginning with a match against
Western Carolina University.
Photo by Dustin Stuart - Photography Editor
Head coach Frederico Santos pumps up the girls to come back for the win.