It all went according to plan for the Fike varsity girls soccer team Wednesday night.
The heavily-favored Lady Golden Demons ran roughshod over visiting Oxford Webb, 9-0, to kick off the first round of the N.C. High School Athletic Association 3-A playoffs.
Fike, the top seed from the 3-A New 6 Conference, scored four times in the opening eight minutes and owned a 7-0 lead at intermission.
Oxford Webb, the No. 4 seed from the Mid-State Conference, ended its season 6-11 while the Lady Demons moved to 16-5-2.
"We came out fired up and gave a good effort early," Fike head coach Toni Varacchi said. "Were able to stay focused, worked hard on some different things, and I thought we executed especially well in the second half. Hopefully we can build on that moving forward."
Leading scorer Tramicka James, a junior, blasted home a shot from a mere 10 yards out to open the scoring at 38:24, and junior Kadie Barnes and freshman Meredith Pruden followed with respective goals in the fourth and fifth minutes.
Beth Hanson assisted Barnes eight minutes in to give Fike four goals in as many shot attempts.
"Sometimes you just wake up knowing you're going to take it to somebody, and we did that today," Barnes said. "It can even be harder when you're playing a team that's not exactly up to par, but we did a better job of staying focused than we have in the past."
James added another score 13 minutes in and freshman Kelly Sigmon got in on the action midway through the half.
With just over three minutes left in the half, sophomore Melissa Eatmon touched a soft pass to Pruden directly in front of the goal. Pruden was out of position with her back to the net but improvised effectively.
"I knew Mel was going to play it to me and that the goal was right behind me," Pruden explained. "I just tried to head it backwards and I didn't even know it went in until everyone started cheering."
Pruden, on an assist from Natalie Winslow, added another goal in the second half for her first career hat trick.
Fike benefited from an Oxford Webb own goal for the final tally.
The Lady Golden Demons have experienced a lot of success in recent years and Barnes believes this team is rounding into form in time to make another deep postseason run.
"We've lost a lot of key players, but people are stepping up," she said. "The freshman have been phenomenal."
Seven underclassmen have seen significant minutes for Varacchi, including four freshmen.
Pruden has enjoyed her first season and wants to keep the winning tradition alive.
"It's been really fun and we've improved a lot," she said. "(The competition) is going to definitely get harder; we just need to work hard and go deep in the playoffs."
Fike will host Northeast Guilford, the No. 2 seed from the Triad Conference, on Saturday. Game time has yet to be determined.
bhowell@wilsontimes.com | 265-7879