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Accolades
Just for kicks, eastside goalie lifts rams to a regional birth
For most goalies, the list of responsibilites is short and sweet. Stop as many shots as you can and keep your team in the match.
For Eastside goalie Kelly Masteller, her duties go much deeper than just stopping the other team.
In a district playoff game against Gainesville, the Rams and Hurricanes were tied at one. Eastside had a free kick from about 25 yards away, and coach Matt Walker made a fateful decision.
He decided to bring Masteller about 80 yards away from her net to take the free kick.
The casual reader would think that Walker had a moment of temporary insanity.
"Bringing the goaltender 80 yards away from the goal isn't the easiest thing to do," Walker said.
But Masteller made her coach look like a genius. She struck a missile and scored to give her team the 2-1 win and a berth in the regional tournament.
"She really showed how good she was," Walker said, adding that she has the strongest leg of any high school girl that he's ever seen.
Scoring from the goalie position is nothing new for Masteller this season. The sophomore has six goals while in net, many of which come from farther away than her game-winning goal against GHS.
"That's intimidating when she's got such a powerful leg," Walker said. "She's extremely accurate."
Masteller's strong leg also keeps Eastside from getting pinned back in its zone, because all her goal kicks go past midfield. In fact, one of her goal kicks went all the way down to the other box, finding Liz Theurer for a goal. Masteller also has two assists from her keeper position.
She's not too bad when she has to stop shots, either. Masteller saved 13 shots in the game against Gainesville and stopped 10 shots in the 1-0 district championship loss against Ocala Forest. On the year, she has recorded nine shutouts and surrendered 30 goals in 25 games.
"She has great anticipation," Walker said. "It's just really natural for her."
Walker said that when Masteller is in goal, the Rams know there is always a chance to win.
"I think she's changed the confidence (level) in the team," Walker said.
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