CHAPEL HILL — Leyla Noronha is one part tiny dancer and one part Thumbelina with a thunderfoot.
The Woods Charter soccer player heads downfield like a ballerina in a clogger competition, switching effortlessly from swift and dazzling footwork that baffles defenders to precision power shots that stun them.
The diminutive sophomore unleashed the twin qualities with complementary zeal for a hat trick against Eno River to help preserve the Wolves’ unbeaten winning streak in a 5-0 victory last Thursday. The Wolves are sitting atop the Central Tar Heel 1A Conference at 10-0-2 (6-0 in conference) heading down the season stretch towards conference and state playoff tournaments.
Noronha leads the team in goals (23), shots (78) and points (52). She is fiery and focused on the field, soft-spoken and measured when being interviewed about her most recent hat trick.
“It always feels really nice, but I keep waiting for more games where that is going to happen,” Noronha said, before explaining in simple terms how she summons those booming kicks. “I practice. I’ve been playing for a long time.”
She also plays club ball with North Carolina Football Club (NCFC) Elite, one of the best and largest youth soccer organizations in North Carolina. Her two older brothers played soccer at Woods Charter, and have pushed her with soccer homeschooling from an early age.
Noronha was quick to share the laurels for her success against the Bobcats.
“I think just the dynamic movement of everybody, having everybody around me, my two mids with me and my wingers. I know if I mess up they’re there,” Noronha said.
So far it’s been a dream season for a 15-year-old, who plays on a young team with just two seniors. She views their youthful composition as cause for continued optimism, not as a drawback.
“That’s good for the years to come. I think we have a lot of potential and we can get pretty far in the state tournament, which I’m very excited about,” Noronha said. “I think we’re all really confident about it, and we’re all still growing with each other … so it’s very bright.”
Longtime Woods Charter head coach Graeme Stewart recognizes what Noronha brings to the game.
“She’s feisty. … She uses her body well, she’s got speed and we’re working on some things for her. She doesn’t know how good she can be yet,” Stewart said. “She’s got that game-changing ability and she believes in herself.”
Noronha also reminds him of one of his former star players, Isabel Pearce. She set the state record for goals with 226 and was a four-time North Central Athletic Conference Player of the Year. Pearce played soccer for UNC-Greensboro, and now is one of Stewart’s assistant coaches.
Stewart sees similarities between Pearce and Noronha at this stage of their development. He believes Pearce can be invaluable in pushing her young understudy to a higher level of play because she is so familiar with that journey.
Stewart laughed slightly when asked for the secret sauce to the Wolves’ success. Woods Charter is far from a one-trick pony, he assured. For example, junior midfielders Lucy Miller and Chloe Richard bring discipline to the middle. “They feed off of each other,” he said, and each has 10 goals on the year.
“We just work hard. The girls believe in each other. We’ve got a good balance,” Stewart said. “We do have a lot of experience in there even though they’re young.”
Stewart said the coaching staff emphasizes the mental side of the game, and how being confident and staying positive is crucial. Players pushing each other and working hard is a mainstay of the program. Imposing those attributes, and being what he called “appropriately aggressive,” elevates their odds of success.
Nor is it all about scoring. The Wolves’ defense is potent. They have outscored opponents 68-7 this season. Senior starting goalkeeper Jana Matthews and backup junior Maddie Sparrow have combined for nine shutouts.
Stewart emphasizes playing both sides of the ball, from front to back, and produces what he terms “sticky defenders.” Forwards don’t like sticky defenders.
That strategy was on full display against Eno River. The Bobcats struggled throughout the night to advance the ball across midfield. Their best kicks might have been punts from senior goalkeeper Mikaela Hill, who blasted the ball several times from in front of goal to near the Wolves’ net.
The Bobcats sputtered transitioning forward. When they were able to penetrate and set up potential scoring opportunities, the Woods Charter defense would collapse immediately, cutting off the angles.
“That’s not by accident. We work on that,” Stewart said. The offense has several looks, but regardless of what shape they’re taking, they can retrench to defense to hunt down the ball at any moment, controlling time and space.
Noronha started the scoring early in the first half when she booted the ball in from right to left.
“My first goal felt really good. I just slotted it into the side net. It slightly hit the post and you could just hear it, the clink sound,” Noronha said. “The other ones I just put some power on them.”
The Wolves’ unrelenting pressure only picked up from there. Sophomore Taylor Young kicked the ball to the upper right, but it struck the crossbar, bounced in front of the net and Hill pounced on the ball before it could roll in. Noronha took a shot on goal but it hit the right upright.
Noronha later zapped the ball straight on, and it was too hot for Hill to handle. The ball ripped through the waiting goalie’s hands and between her legs on its way to the back of the net.
After Miller’s penalty kick on a handball call was snagged by Hill, Richard scored on a nifty shot to the lowest spot of the right corner. The perfectly placed ball just eluded a diving Hill’s outstretched fingertips for a 3-0 lead at the half.
The second half picked up where the first half left off. Noronha had a shot on goal that appeared to be a score but a handball penalty nullified the play. Richard was awarded a penalty kick but Hill stifled the shot. Then Noronha rifled a shot that bounded hard off of Hill just in front of the net for a save.
“I hit it and the goalie made a really nice save. Unfortunately, she didn’t get her hands on it, and it hit my shin and just popped in,” Noronha said, chalking the goal up to luck and preparation. “You’ve got to take advantage of all those second balls you get, and you’ve just got to attack it.”
Following Noronha’s hat trick, sophomore midfielder Cate Czyzewski found the back of the net with a long kick from near the right sideline, impressing her coach.
“That was good. We hadn’t worked on that. That was her,” Stewart said.
Woods Charter never took the foot off the gas pedal despite the 5-0 lead. Noronha had two more shots on goal, but Hill caught one and deflected another on a diving stop.
The Wolves earned another win on Monday over the Chatham Charter Knights (3-6-1), 9-0, to improve to 10-0-2 on the year. They have two games scheduled for this week, including a clash with the Seaforth Hawks (7-4) on Thursday.