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Pirate's no slouch on offense, defense

By STEVE LEE
Published December 21, 2006

ADVERTISEMENT [Times photo: Zach Boyden-Holmes] Pasco sophomore Bridget Eugenides prefers to help set up scoring opportunities for her teammates instead of taking aim at the net herself.

DADE CITY - Bridget Eugenides has a unique pair of soccer shoes and her coach wants them.

Pasco coach Wardell Powell has a place reserved for the sophomore midfielder's red, white and blue footwear when she hangs them up.

"His Jamaican jokes, he's always making fun of us," Eugenides said. "He's like, 'You Americans wear star-spangled banner shoes.' My senior year I have to sign them and he's going to pin them up in his classroom. I'm going to do it."

What makes those patriotic shoes so valuable to Wardell is the player wearing them. Eugenides is the Pirates' best two-way player. Plus, she ranks second on the team and fourth in the county with 11 assists.

"She's solid both ways," Powell said. "She can play the offensive end as well as the defensive end. Although she's there as a defensive mid, we like her to push up and support. She finds the open space and distributes the ball really well."

That fits right into Eugenides' motto that it's better to give than receive.

"Scoring's not everything to me," said Eugenides, who has five goals. "I feel it's better to give an assist. I just feel like it's greater than a goal. I'd rather help someone score and make them happy."

Particularly happy is Cassandra Hill, Pasco's scoring leader with 21 goals and 54 points. Nearly half of Hill's goals were set up by Eugenides.

"Finding Cassie, she tends to do that very well," Powell said.

Added Eugenides: "I love setting her up. Where I tell her to go, she goes."

For Eugenides, finding an open teammate or making a steal is about intellect as much as talent.

"My knowledge of the game benefits me," she said. "If you have good knowledge, it helps you out."

"She understands the game," Wardell said, adding Eugenides "really energizes the team."

Eugenides credited Land O'Lakes coach Vicky King and her sister Tara Eugenides, an indefatigable sweeper for the 2003 state champion Gators, for her sense of teamwork and giving 100 percent effort at all times. The younger Eugenides was a Land O'Lakes ball girl during Tara's four seasons there.

"Always work hard to go far, that's what King always said," Eugenides recalled.

Unike Tara, the younger Eugenides opted for Pasco. The family lives in Dade City, but Tara played for Land O'Lakes, in part, because her mother, Georgeanne, worked for a company there.

"I always follow in my sister's footsteps," Eugenides said. "I said why not try something different. Since I went to Pasco Middle, most of my friends would go to (Pasco) high school. I'm happy with my decision."

Steve Lee can be reached at lee@sptimes.com or (352) 521-6517.

[Last modified December 21, 2006, 06:34:15]