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(ALEX HAVARDANSKY | THE GRAHAM LEADER) Taylor Lauster clears the ball to the Lubbock Liberty Patriots side of the field during their match up on Tuesday March, 25. Lauster accounted for seven defensive stops in the first half against Lubbock while also being a stabilizing force during the teams first round matchup against Borger. -
(ALEX HAVARDANSKY | THE GRAHAM LEADER) Mike Garcia stands ready at third base for any potential scoring opportunity after knocking in an RBI double for his the Steers during the Saturday March, 22 matchup. Garcia would go on to steal home plate after a wild pitch making it a 2-0 Graham lead.
It’s been a busy week for Graham athletics. The Lady Blues closed their schedule for soccer while the Steers held their annual senior day over the weekend.
One team’s season came to an end this week while the other is just around the midpoint of their schedule. Both teams also have fine crops of talent with two particular athletes flying high and having great performances.
The Graham Leader is recognizing Taylor Lauster of the Lady Blues and Mike Garcia of the Steers as this week's athletes of the week.
Taylor Lauster, Lady Blues soccer
The Lady Blues soccer season didn’t end the way the team wanted it to. However, that should not take away from the fact that Lauster, a junior goalkeeper for the team, was nothing short of spectacular during by district play.
In the teams bi-district opener against Borger, Lauster had a pair of nice saves including a spectacular play where she needed to catch the ball falling backwards towards the net in order to keep the Lady Bulldogs from taking the lead in the first half.
Throughout the entire game she only surrendered one goal and helped the Lady Blues advance to the second round.
While Lauster was great in that game, she was truly tested in the Lady Blues second round matchup against Lubbock Liberty. The Patriots were very aggressive offensively throughout the contest but especially in the first half.
Lauster faced a lot of pressure with Lubbock putting up multiple shots on fast break attempts. However, Lauster held strong making seven key defensive stops.
Head coach Casey Weil had high praise for Lauster in reflection on her season.
“She’s a great player, she’s a little safety net back there and a great person who leads by example. Just a great kid,” Weil said.
These were a combination of saves and breaking up potential fast break attempts to keep the score knotted at 0-0 going into the second half. Lauster’s only real mistake came when she was trying to make a herculean effort to save the season for Graham.
Soccer of course is a team sport, but Lauster was a pillar of success and stability throughout the Lady Blues bi-district playoff run.
In particular, Weil spoke about how the team always felt confident in themselves even when they were in shootout situations.
“I can’t remember one shootout we were in where we weren’t successful,” Weil said.
Being that she is only in her third year in the program, the Lady Blues will continue to look onto her as a source of veteran leadership next season.
Mike Garcia, Steers baseball
Despite Saturday’s, March 22, matchup against Iowa Park being a highlight of the seniors on the Steers roster, Garcia, who is in his first year at the program, still managed to carve out a place for himself as an offensive power house for the Steers.
Head coach Allen McGee credits this to the work ethic that Garcia has shown since moving to Graham.
“He has just worked from day one,” he said. “His work ethic and team-first approach were the first things we noticed.”
Garcia set the tone early in Graham’s matchup versus Iowa Park by launching a big RBI double off the left field wall to score Harison Brockway in the bottom of the first inning.
Garcia followed this up with excellent baserunning when he reached third on a groundout after the double and then stole home on a wild pitch to make it a 2-0 Steers lead.
Garcia also capped off the inning with a disciplined walk to score another runner at third base with the bases loaded. He single handedly accounted for half the runs scored in Graham’s six run first inning explosion.
Garcia would also finish the game with an additional single into right field in the bottom of the fourth.
McGee said that not only has Garcia been a great athlete on the field, he’s been a model person off of it as well.
“He started out on the JV team and did a great job showing the younger players how to approach practice and a game,” McGee said. “He has definitely been a major plus to Graham athletics.”
As the Steers move into the second half of their season, they will continue to look for big moments from their star outfielder.
