Fancy Footwork

LAKEWOOD RANCH — Kayla Gray could succumb to the pain piercing down her leg or she could be the heroic player her country desperately needed.

With the weight of a nation riding on her every move, the 17-year-old forward hopped off the bench and ran onto the field without hesitation.

Gray positioned herself in front of the goal and waited for an opportunity.

She didn’t have to wait long.

With three minutes remaining in regulation, the Braden River High senior took a deep cross in front of the goal and out-smarted the Cuban goalkeeper for the game-winning goal.

With the goal, Gray helped the under-20 Jamaican women’s team defeat Cuba 2-1 and win Group Four of the Caribbean Football Union Women’s Qualifying Tournament July 23 through July 27, in Jamaica.

“The stadium erupted, and I felt like a hero who saved the day,” Gray says. “It felt good knowing I had everything it took, and it just shows that hard work pays off.”

With the win, Jamaica will advance to the final round of the tournament set for Oct. 16 through Oct. 24, in Puerto Rico. Jamaica and Cuba will join Trinidad and Tobago, the Dominican Republic, Anguilla, St. Kitts/Nevis, Suriname and Grenada in the final CFU round. The top-three teams will advance to the CONCACAF round, a qualifier for the World Cup, scheduled for January in the Cayman Islands.

“Hopefully, we can make it past this round and make it to World Cup — that would be huge,” Gray says. “A girls team has never made it before, so it would be huge for the country.”

This summer marked Gray’s second trip to the CFU Women’s Qualifying Tournament, after competing for Jamaica’s under-17 team last year.

After trying out for and making the Jamaican team as a junior, Gray was invited back to play for the under-20 team.

“It was like a weight off my shoulders,” Gray says of not having to try out. “I wasn’t nervous. I was more comfortable and laid-back, because I knew what I had to do. Playing up felt good, too.”

Gray left July 9 for Jamaica and spent two weeks practicing with her teammates in preparation for the CFU Women’s Qualifying Tournament. Then, four days before the tournament was scheduled to begin, Gray suffered a leg contusion, after kicking a defender’s knee in practice.

“It was like kicking a tree trunk,” Gray says.
Gray had to have blood drained from her shin, leaving her ability to play in doubt.

“I went through a day of depression, because I had been there for two weeks and had worked so hard,” Gray says. “When it first happened, my leg was so huge I couldn’t move it. I felt so bad.”

Gray was held out of the first game against Bermuda. She returned to play half of Jamaica’s game against Curacao, during which she scored two goals. Gray didn’t start the third game against Cuba, but she came in about the 70th minute and eventually scored the game-winning goal.

“I had so much adrenaline and was so excited that it wasn’t until everything settled down that the pain really set in,” Gray says. “I was going to do whatever it took to get back on the field. I just wanted to go out there. I never give up. I’m relentless.”

Gray returned home July 30 and immediately began practicing with her Lakewood Ranch Chargers U18 team and conditioning for the upcoming high school season.

“I’m hoping to take what I learned in Jamaica and use it for this high school season,” says Gray, who verbally committed to the University of North Florida. “I’m aiming to be one of the leaders.”

Contact Jen Blanco at [email protected].

BY THE NUMBERS
6 — The total number of goals Gray has scored for Jamaica.

8 — The number of teams that qualified for the final round of the Caribbean Football Union Women’s Qualifying Tournament, which will be held Oct. 16 to Oct. 24, in Puerto Rico.

0 — The number of times a Jamaican women’s team has competed in the World Cup.

87 — The minute in which Gray scored the game-winning goal in Jamaica’s 2-1 victory over Cuba July 27.