P.O. Male Athlete of the Week: Mikell McGee
Goal scoring in soccer is not exact science.
As Mikell McGee said, "It's hard to put into words."
For McGee, Fannett-Metal's prolific senior striker, it might be easier to put the ball in the back of the net than describe how he does it.
McGee poured in 16 goals last week to help the Tigers roll to a 4-0 week and he is the Public Opinion Male Athlete of the Week.
Here's what McGee said about being a goal scorer: "It's being in the right place at the right time. I try to use my speed and time it so I'm not offsides, and I try to split the defenders so I can get 1-on-1's. And you always have to follow up when anybody takes a shot."
McGee has used those skills to climb to his perch as the area's leading scorer for the second straight season. He now has 37 goals this year.
F-M coach Greg Best said, "He has a knack for keeping the ball close to his feet, and when he gets a little space on a defender he can get his shot off. He's also a good jumper and is good in the air.
"And here's the big thing - the coaches are confident when he takes a shot, 90 percent of the time it will be on goal, and good things can happen then."
McGee credits teammate Kyler Goshorn for a lot of his success, especially lately. Goshorn assisted on eight of McGee's goals last week.
"Everything just started clicking. The midfield has been better at getting the forwards the ball and Kyler has been amazing on left wing," McGee said. "He's given me good crosses and good through balls and he's playing hard."
Best said, "Kyler is helping keep some of the pressure off Mikell and they are playing well together."
As a consequence, opponents are fishing the ball out of their net regularly.
Mikell McGee, Fannett-Metal
Sport: Soccer
Position: Striker
Grade: Senior
Height: 5-foot-9
Parents: Tana McGee-Martin and Mike Freet
Interests: McGee plays basketball for the Tigers, and likes to hunt and fish.
Favorite athlete: Michael Jordan
Favorite team: Cleveland Cavaliers
Statistics: In helping F-M to a 4-0 week, McGee scored 16 goals ... He had five against Forbes Road, six vs. Northern Bedford, two against Shalom Christian and three more vs. Chestnut Ridge ... For the season, McGee has 37 goals and six assists.