Having already established her credentials as a talented player in her first two seasons, Santa Margarita junior forward Lauren Bohaboy took aim at ascending to a higher level of play for herself and her team throughout the 2009-10 season.
With a focused intensity on becoming a dominant goal scorer and team leader, Bohaboy used speed, field vision and off-the-ball movement to complement one of the county’s most versatile arrays of shots, a combination that produced a school-record 28 goals and helped the Eagles advance to the CIF-SS Division 1 semifinals.
For a standout season that validated her ascension into the county’s elite, Bohaboy has been selected as the Register’s 2009-10 girls soccer player of the year.
“I think every team needs a leader and it’s something I like,” Bohaboy said. “The team worked hard this year, and I just tried to stay positive and motivate everyone to be the best they can be. I’m honored to win this award.”
After a strong preseason effort highlighted by a game-winning score in a 1-0 road victory against Dana Hills and a two-goal effort in a 3-1 road victory over Capistrano Valley, Bohaboy and the team entered the Trinity League portion of their schedule looking to break Mater Dei’s four-year reign as league champion.
In the teams’ first meeting at Mater Dei, Bohaboy recorded her second hat trick of the season, which included the game-tying goal late in the second half of a 4-4 tie.
With the inside track to the league title at stake in their Feb. 3 rematch, Bohaboy and the Eagles scratched out a thrilling 1-0 victory.
Bohaboy said that playing in and winning a game with so much on the line meant a great deal to her and her teammates.
“That was a really fun game,” Bohaboy said. “We had so many fans there and it was exciting to win.”
Bohaboy then scored seven goals over the next three matches, as Santa Margarita wrapped up its Trinity League title and entered the CIF-SS Division 1 playoffs as the No. 4 overall seed.
In the first round against Mira Costa, Bohaboy proved to be the difference, recording a hat trick that included the match-winning goal in a 3-2 triumph.
With the Eagles locked in a tight battle with Los Osos in the second round, Bohaboy came through again when her team needed it most, scoring both goals in a 2-1 victory.
Her streak of five consecutive games with two or more goals ended after that game, as a severely sprained ankle ended her season prematurely.
After defeating Capistrano Valley in the quarterfinals, the Eagles met their match against eventual Division 1 champion Esperanza in the semifinals.
“It was hard to have to watch my teammates play in those games,” Bohaboy conceded.
As she prepares for her final season at Santa Margarita, the Notre Dame commit identified some of the things that she and her teammates will need to do to make their championship dreams a reality.
“I want to come out focused and ready to go from the start,” Bohaboy said. “As a team, we just have to work hard and keep our mindset on what we need to do.”
