Mike Ridaught
Mike Ridaught is the editor and publisher of ThePrepZone.com, the foremost website for high school sports in northeast Florida.
Yesterday, Ocala Vanguard’s Maddie Cathey was named Girls Soccer Player of the Year. Cathey ended the season with a county leading 30 points as a defender. She finished with 10 goals and 10 assists for the Knights, who finished the season at 17-2. Vanguard, which started the season with a school-best 14-0 record, placed five players on the first team and three players on the second team. Cathey’s favorite moment of the season came in the Class 5A, District 4 championship game, when the Knights defeated Daytona Beach Seabreeze 4-2. It was the first district title for the 3-time team captain.
Senior Sydney Switzer of North Marion was also named to the All-County Girls Soccer first team. Switzer scored a county-high 31 goals and added 16 assists to finish with 78 points, including 6 hat tricks and a five-goal game. She also added 115 steals. Switzer was one of three North Marion players to make the first team, while Forest added five on the first team, including sophomore goal keeper Emery Williams who had an .850 save percentage.