When Century girls soccer lost to Queen Anne’s in a Class 2A state semifinal, tears and disbelief flooded the faces of Century’s team. But captain and East Carolina commit Lexi McGinnis looked on, happy and thankful, thinking about her last three years with the program.
Pasta parties, singing songs on team bus rides, summer workouts and bonding with her teammates overshadowed the heartbreaking loss. Century molded a family — one McGinnis will always cherish.
The Knights started the year 0-2, but their bond and cohesiveness resurrected their season and sparked a 14-game unbeaten streak. McGinnis and her fellow seniors led the change, defined by a collaborative team effort and unwavering defense. The back line, aided by the midfield, stepped up and shut out all six county opponents en route to a conference championship.
McGinnis was primarily used as a defensive midfielder through her first three high school seasons, but an injury to sophomore Lenah Ham forced McGinnis to play in more of an attacking role, which she preferred.
“As much as I do love being a defender and getting in there and being gritty, attacking is something that comes naturally to me,” she said. “I play attacking [midfield] for club usually, and I was really excited to get in that position and flourish with the team.”
As a senior, McGinnis posted six goals and five assists, a significant increase from her three-goal, three-assist junior season spent mostly in a defensive role.
While McGinnis is supremely talented and technically sound, it is her effort and drive that makes her so special.
“We didn’t know … who was going to be that gritty player who would go up and get a head ball, who would be the player to go in and get a tackle, and Lexi was that player,” Century coach Chris Little said. “She had several goals this year that were just absolute grit and determination.”
McGinnis started to take soccer seriously in middle school and quickly adopted tunnel vision, dropping other hobbies and sports to focus solely on soccer. She knew with the right training and atmosphere she could play at the college level.
McGinnis transferred from Gerstell Academy to Century prior to her sophomore year for soccer and school purposes. That decision immediately paid dividends as McGinnis joined the Knights on their run to a Class 2A state title.
While walking into a state championship-caliber team may be intimidating for most underclassmen, McGinnis felt comfortable from the beginning.
“From the first moment I came to the first Century workout that I ever went to, I felt like everyone just welcomed me into the family that Century has,” she said. “It was awesome to get to know everyone and to have the seniors drive me everywhere and take me under their wing.”
She was a reserve midfielder who contributed regularly off the bench. She was rather demure as a sophomore on a senior-heavy team, though her play was anything but quiet.
“Like any young person coming into a new environment, she wasn’t jumping out there, getting in front of everybody,” Little said, “but her soccer spoke for itself, and a lot of her teammates started right away to respect her ability on the field and really made her feel a great part of the team.”
After a successful first season, McGinnis developed an appetite for winning. Between club and school soccer, McGinnis was constantly training. And when given an opportunity to rest in the summer, she refused to miss optional workouts. McGinnis wanted to continue her development, but also help underclassmen with their transition to varsity soccer, hoping to repay the favor she was allotted.
Playing all 80 minutes in nearly every game this season, McGinnis’ motor worked as long and as hard as anyone’s, except she never ran out of gas.
“If you don’t see me running on the field, then there’s definitely something wrong,” she said, “because I like to bust my butt and make sure that I’m always working hard for myself and my teammates.”
Little braced his seniors before the season that he may need them to play 80 minutes in some games. In preparation, he pushed them during practice, and McGinnis accepted the challenge.
“I kid with her all the time about poking the bear,” Little said. “I’m always trying to push her in practice. I’ll hit her and I’ll say, ‘Hey, Lexi, am I poking the bear?’ … It resonated with her, and we worked all season long at making sure that we were trying to elevate our players by pushing them in practice.”
But in October this year, it was McGinnis who poked Little. McGinnis orchestrated a team Halloween costume, in which different groups of girls dressed up as the various versions of their coach based on his hobbies and professions, including “Golfer Chris,” “Referee Chris” and “Business Chris.”
While the season ended in disappointment, it is the good times with her teammates that stick with McGinnis, who will soon have a new set of teammates. She will play for East Carolina — which is fresh off an American Athletic Conference Tournament championship and NCAA Tournament berth — next fall.
As a 5-foot-3 freshman, she may not be a starter immediately, but if given the opportunity to play, she will be easy to spot.
“Lexi is the kind of player that doesn’t have to score a lot of goals, but you notice her on the field,” Little said. “You notice her on the field because she’s working at a level that’s past everyone else.”
Doug Kapustin/for Carroll County Times
Century’s Lexi McGinnis, right, is greeted by a teammate after scoring a goal during a 2022 regional playoff game. (Doug Kapustin/Freelance)
