Mikayla Mance

Yough

Last week: Mance scored three goals last Thursday against Greensburg Salem and three more in a victory Monday against Southmoreland.

Check this out: Mance, a 5-foot-4 freshman forward, has made a gigantic impact in her first season of high school soccer. She is the leading scorer in the WPIAL with 28 goals and is one of the reasons Yough is having one of its best seasons in a long time. The Cougars were 9-1 after beating Southmoreland. They have finished above .500 only once in the past eight seasons.

Have you always been a big goal scorer? Yes. I’ve played forward since I was, like, 6 years old.

What is the most goals you have ever scored in a game? I had 11 once in a middleschool game.

Wow. Were there any goalkeepers in that game? Yeah [laugh] — just not very good ones.

Being only a freshman did you have any expectations coming into the year? I knew this would be the best chance for Yough’s high school team to get anywhere, so I want to try and help get us as far as we can. But no, I didn’t expect to score this much. I thought I’d be kind of an average scorer.

How did the older players take to a freshman coming in and leading the team in scoring? Some of them weren’t too nice about it. Others liked it.

Do you have a favorite soccer player? Alex Morgan (member of the gold-medal-winning U.S. Olympic team who plays for the Seattle Sounders). I love her.

Is there something that bothers you about soccer? When girls just kick the ball. I like the passing game.

Cartoon you watched as a kid? Sponge Bob.

Any cartoon you watch now? Yeah, I still watch Sponge Bob. I come home every day from school and watch Sponge Bob.