Watershed moment: Bulldogs give Coach Pete Hald his 550th career victory

It was a milestone night for the Flagler Palm Coast girls soccer team as goalkeeper Natalie Neal also notched her 400th career save.

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As Flagler Palm Coast’s girls soccer game against Jacksonville Sandalwood progressed, it became evident that this would be the night that Bulldogs coach Pete Hald would attain the rare coaching milestone of 550 career wins.

What made this accomplishment even more uncommon was that Hald has achieved all 550 wins with the same school. He is in his 35th season as FPC’s girls soccer coach. With the 5-0 home victory against Sandalwood on Friday, Dec. 5, Hald improved his coaching record to 550 wins, 264 losses and 93 ties.

His players celebrated the moment by dumping a cooler of water over his head and presenting him with a poster recognizing the achievement and signed by each player.

“It was important to celebrate Coach Hald,” assistant coach Cat Bradley said. “It’s special that it happened at our home field. I had the sign made, and the girls were definitely all in. They wanted to celebrate.”

Junior Hailey Sammons who scored on a penalty kick and added an assist in the victory, said celebrating with their coach meant a lot to the team.

“We want to give him as much as we can back, that he gives us,” she said.

With the win, the Bulldogs remained undefeated at 8-0-1, and senior goalkeeper Natalie Neal also reached a milestone with her 400th career save. Neal needed two saves against Sandalwood to reach 400. Sandalwood had two shots on goal in the game. Neal, who will play for two-time Junior College national champ Daytona State College next year, made her second save of the game in the second half.

“Natalie's been awesome,” Hald said of the fourth-year starter. “She's had a tremendous career, and I know it's not over, but it makes you very comfortable playing most teams when you have a keeper of that caliber. She's got talent, and now she's got the experience. She's a leader back there. I’m glad we’re having a good year for her.”

Indeed, the Bulldogs’ 8-0-1 start is their best since they were 8-0-2 to start the 2013-14 season, the year they advanced to the state semifinals. Their best start under Hald was in 2012 when they were 21-0-2 before losing their first game.


EARLIER THAN EXPECTED

Hald said he knew his 550th win was coming, but getting it this early in the season was a pleasant surprise.


“I knew it was going to happen. I figured we would win at least eight games this year. I didn't know we were going to win eight out of our first nine.
— PETE HALD, FPC girls soccer coach

“I knew it was going to happen. I figured we would win at least eight games this year,” he said. “I didn't know we were going to win eight out of our first nine. I didn't foresee that. But Wolfson beat us last year, and we turned around and beat them (3-0 on Nov. 7), Seabreeze beat us, and we tied them (2-2 on Nov. 21), and New Smyrna beat us twice last year, so that road victory aganst the defending conference champs was nice.”

FPC beat New Smyrna Beach 2-1 on Dec. 2 to give Hald his 549th victory.

“There are so many things people don’t see that Coach does and all the hours he puts in,” said Bradley, who has coached with Hald for 15 years and played for him before that. “Five hundred and fifty wins is pretty impressive, and he’s a pretty loved guy.”

Eva Sites broke a scoreless tie in the Sandalwood game with about 15 minutes, 40 seconds left in the first half. Laurelee Macleod made it 2-0 before the end of the first half. After Sammons' penalty kick, Katherine Ouellette scored with 17:42 left to give the Bulldogs a 4-0 lead and making the win and Hald’s water cooler shower a foregone conclusion. Ouellette put an exclamation point on the victory with her second goal with 3:13 remaining.

“We all play better if we have a goal in mind,” Sammons said. “We just love coming together. It's just loving the game we play.”

Bradley said she didn’t want to talk too much about Hald’s upcoming milestone as to not put too much pressure on the players. Neal, who also received a commemorative poster, said she wasn’t told about her upcoming milestone until after the New Smyrna Beach game when she saved eight shots and had two to go.


... As I was going to sleep last night (on Dec. 4), I started thinking about it. I was, like, ‘Wow, I actually almost have 400 saves, that's a lot.
— NATALIE NEAL, FPC goalkeeper

“I was happy we won against a conference team, I wasn’t really thinking about my stats,” she said. “But as I was going to sleep last night (on Dec. 4), I started thinking about it. I was, like, ‘Wow, I actually almost have 400 saves, that's a lot.’ I felt, in a good game like this, I can get (two saves) in a breeze. I’m so glad Coach Hald got to 550. He’s a very great coach. And then 400, I feel like it's just a good night.”

 

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