There was a noticeable tension surrounding the Ashley girls’ soccer team as it stepped onto the field Monday, May 18, for a third-round playoff showdown with Fuquay-Varina.
The Screaming Eagles were favored, but confidence and certainty are two different things in May.
Ashley entered the match battered and bruised, with at least four starters dealing with injuries in some form.
Any nerves eased quickly.
Just minutes into the match, sophomore Riley McNulty found the back of the net to give Ashley an early lead and a needed jolt of energy. She struck again in the 65th minute, delivering both goals in a 2-0 victory over the No. 6-seeded Bengals.
The win sends the No. 3-seeded Screaming Eagles (16-4-2) back to the state playoff quarterfinals for a fourth consecutive season.
“It’s a sisterhood here,” McNulty said. “You can play hard for each other the whole game and not get the goals, so when you finally do, it’s just a different kind of feeling. It’s amazing.”
For a program that reached three straight state championship matches from 2023-25, this season has looked and felt different. Ashley lost one of the most accomplished senior classes the area has seen in recent memory, leaving this year’s group to redefine itself almost from scratch.
Instead of trying to mirror the teams that came before it, Ashley has spent the season adapting on the fly.
“We came in very open-minded,” senior defender Sarah Branin said. “We came in completely fresh, with no expectations.”
That approach forced the Screaming Eagles to experiment throughout the spring. They shuffled positions, adjusted formations and searched for an identity as younger players stepped into larger roles. After an early-season loss to Hoggard, significant changes were necessary.
“We just had to blow it up,” Graf said. “The Hoggard game sealed the fact that we had to make a change. We weren’t putting people in places where they could be their best.”
The adjustments gradually paid off. Ashley has lost just twice in its last eight matches and recorded its second playoff shutout Monday night.
Next comes another challenge. The Screaming Eagles travel to face No. 2-seeded Holly Springs on Thursday with a trip to the state semifinals on the line.
“Don’t count us out,” Branin said. “We’re still working. Every year, we’re back to work.”
This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: Ashley girls soccer holds off Fuquay-Varina for playoff quarterfinal spot