Looking to make history
KARNS CITY — McKenna Martin never knew how fast she really is.
Until she began to play soccer.
But that didn't happen until she was 11. Before that, the freshman on the Karns City girls soccer team was a gymnast.
Coach Tracy Dailey sought to change that.
“McKenna would come over and run around in our back yard with my daughter, Emma,” Dailey said. “She was so fast. I thought, 'We need to get a soccer ball at her feet.'”
Martin did and her career was born.
At first, Martin got by with her blazing speed, simply outrunning everyone on the pitch to score goals.
This season — her first as a varsity soccer player — Martin showed off more than just her quickness.
She had developed her skills and scored 38 goals — the most by a Karns City freshman since Dailey began coaching seven seasons ago.
“She's just very dangerous,” Dailey said. “She's very quick and she's able to strip the ball off defenders.”
Martin said she also became more tenacious on the field for the first time this season.
“This year was kind of a switch for me,” said Martin, a forward. “I haven't always been so aggressive. I kind of switched that on and stayed switched on and went for the ball much more. I think it was just because it was my ninth-grade year and I knew I had to step up. I was more motivated.”
Martin scored the winning goal that gave Karns City its eighth consecutive District 9 championship and 22nd in the last 25 years.
Martin is well-versed on Karns City girls soccer history.
And she wants her name to be a part of it one day.
Martin said she knows there are four players in the program's history who have cracked 100 career goals.
Leslie Barnhart leads the way with 213. Brittni Grenninger, who is now the Freeport girls soccer coach, scored 194; Emily LoPresti tallied 159 and Breann Wood scored 122.
Martin wants to be the fifth — and she's off to a great start.
“I've heard of all of them and it's crazy,” Martin said. “I do remember hearing a lot about them and I always wanted to be part of the 100-goal club.”
