District girls soccer: Noelle Simmons goes from student section to goal-scorer for Gardens
PALM BEACH GARDENS — This time last year, Noelle Simmons was watching from the stands as Gardens edged Centennial by a 3-2 margin in the district quarterfinals.
This year, she found the back of the net in the same match against the same Eagles.
Simmons and forward teammate Sara Inman tallied a pair of braces, while a pair of Centennial goalkeepers could only brace themselves on Wednesday night.
The two-goal efforts from Inman and Simmons served as exclamation points in the Gators’ 6-0 district quarterfinal victory, a night in which Gardens peppered shots on goal at will throughout the match.
“They’ve been trying to get me on this team ever since I came to Gardens,” Simmons said. “So this year, I was like, ‘Let’s give it a shot, why not?’”
It’s been a shot in the arm for Gardens’ production in the final third, that much is for sure.
Watching her smooth transitions off the ball and the level of finesse in the attacking half, one would be hard-pressed to believe that Simmons entered this year as a junior with just three games of starting experience at the varsity level.
“I heard about Noelle when she came in last year,” head coach Abigail Carr said. “And obviously, she turned up this year and I’m so happy that she did. She’s definitely brought a whole new dynamic to the team.”
The Gators' star, whose performance Wednesday bumped her total goals on the season to 28, has been the latest performer to help change the narrative surrounding the Gardens’ soccer program.
That’s part of the reason why Gardens is turning its attention so quickly from Wednesday’s expected result toward the approaching semifinals against Treasure Coast.
“I think I like going in as the underdog,” Carr said. “Every time we go to an away game, we get called in on senior night because they want to score goals against us. We say, ‘Absolutely not, let’s make this unenjoyable for the other team.’ Sometimes people look at Gardens and think, ‘This is going to be easy, this is going to be a walkthrough.’”
That isn’t just Treasure Coast — it’s the result of a reputation that Carr is trying to change at Gardens.
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In the three years she has been the Gators’ coach, the squad has improved their performance and furthered their postseason goals every season.
“Our end goal is going to be next week,” Carr said. “And there’s absolutely no reason why we can’t do this. If we’re in the right mindset, we can do it.”
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Gardens' Noelle Simmons goes from student section to lead goal-scorer
