Dawidczyk nets six, breaks school record in 6-6 tie

Emily Dawidczyk scored six goals and broke the Oxford scoring record

Text and photos by Steev Riccardo

DUDLEY – The last thing you want to do is tell Oxford High School Girls Soccer star Emily Dawidczyk that something is not possible, because with this girl anything seems possible—not just in track and field—but on a soccer field as well.

The senior all-star played nothing less than brilliantly, leading the Pirates to a 6-6 tie against an excellent Shepherd Hill Rams team last Thursday, scoring all six of her team’s goals in one of the greatest individual performances in Oxford High School history.Things did not start off well for the Pirates when sophomore Callie Andrews picked up a red card for an intentional handball on a shot that appeared to be heading into the goal only three minutes into the game.  

The red card ruling resulted in the Pirates being forced to play an already heavily favored Rams team a player down.

The Rams wasted no time in capitalizing and picked up two quick goals by junior Emily Reynolds and senior Amanda Keovongmanysar to take a 2-0 lead and it looked like they were going to roll all over the Pirates.

Dawidczyk was not about to go away that easily, though, and blasted a shot by Rams sophomore goalie Ciara McKissick to make it 2-1. Moments later she tied the game with another score, making a 2-2 game.

Keovongmanysar, who played an excellent game as well, put the Rams up 3-2 on a nifty goal but Dawidczyk then scored four of the next five goals and the Pirates were up 6-4 with less than twenty minutes left and looked like they could be pulling off a huge upset.

However, the Rams refused to quit and goals by co-captain Laura Barton and Reynolds tied the game and they escaped with a 6-6 tie.

For the Pirates and coach Dung Nguyen it was moral victory and afterwards was talking like his team had won. “Playing a man down, down 2-0, these girls played with heart and they pulled it out.  I had a funny feeling before the game started that these girls were going to pull it off today. When we play a more competitive team the girls show up and this team we tied today is a great team.”

“This is unbelievable, I am really proud of our team, they put everything into this win,” said Dawidczyk, who became the all-time goal scorer leader in Oxford High School history with her performance.

“We had a red card early in the game and that’s unfortunate but I think everyone stepped up and we have a lot of heart on our team. Once you get out there, it’s like there is a driving force behind us,” said Dawidczyk.

Shepherd Hill coach Sarah Garneau had never seen a red card called before.  “The referee did say the grass was kind of long and it was iffy if the ball was going to go in but ultimately it was going to and he had to call it.”

Garneau also praised Dawidczyk’s effort. “She is very good. She is hard to stop, she has really long legs, she is very fast, you have to find someone that has the same speed as her, my girls are quick but its hard.”

Rams’ Tina Gauvin, who played well in the loss, also acknowledged Dawidczyk’s effort. “She is an amazing player and I have to give her props. Anyone that can do this should be going D1 and I tried my best, but she is really good”.

It was tough for the Rams to take a tie, but Gauvin knows it was just one game. “It’s just a bump in the road, we just have to get past it and play on.”

Fellow Rams senior star Taylor Daniels said, “I feel like our momentum was a little off today. Usually we get out there and we pass well, but today it was like we were in a slump, we couldn’t shake it off.”

On the school record, Dawidczyk said, “Getting the record means so much to me. I've broken so many track records that it feels great to break a record in the other sport that I love. I think it finally validates me as a good dual-sport athlete.”  

That might be a bit of an understatement, considering Dawidczyk leads Central Mass in scoring and may very well be the best player as well.

The Rams were back in the winning column with a 1-0 victory over Minnechaug behind Meg Dunn's great goaltending and a goal by Freshmen Rachel Schulman on Saturday, giving them an impressive 6-1-3 record on the year.

The 4-5-1 Pirates still have some work to do if they want to make the playoffs.

For more on Shepherd Hill and Oxford girls soccer, check out View From The Sidelines every week in the Patriot and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ViewFromTheSidelines or contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it with your feedback and comments.