LAWRENCE - The first time Central Catholic girls soccer coach Jami Hayden saw Lucy Irwin with a soccer ball at her feet, a week before her first-ever official day of high school, one thought immediately popped in her head.

This girl has to be in my starting line-up.

That was in August of 2022. and Irwin has been in the starting lineup every day since.

The Windham native has quickly become the best player in the Merrimack Valley Conference, the best player in the Eagle-Tribune Area and is among the best in the state.

College coaches have already been reaching out to her because she does one thing that is extremely hard to find.

She scores goals.

For two-plus years, the opposing coaches in the MVC have tried every defensive strategy against Irwin and most have failed.

The proof?

In 45 games, she has 34 goals and 16 assists, including seven goals in the first five games this season.

"When she gets going, she can't be stopped," said Hayden. "We saw that the other night in the North Andover game (scoring three goals). She's just so hungry for the ball and so tenacious."

The accolades are there too: Irwin's a two-time Eastern Mass, MVC and Eagle-Tribune All-Star.

And the kicker?

Last year as a sophomore, she was unanimously chosen as the MVC D1 Player of the Year.

"I don't think a sophomore has won that award in a long time," said Hayden. "You go into those meetings, you fight for your players and there wasn't a fight at all. I brought her name up and everyone said, 'yes absolutely, without a doubt she is the best player in the league'."

Lucy was given a soccer ball at the age of two and has dominated the fields ever since.

"Lucy is just someone who does everything for you and she scores goals. That's what she does," said Hayden. "She does it in practice, she does it in scrimmages and she does it in games. She just has a complete nose for the goal and will do whatever it takes."

Lucy's father Brian was also a big-time scorer. He was an Eagle-Tribune Player of the Year back when he starred at Pinkerton Academy. He went on to a terrific four-year career at St. Anselm College (1996-1999), where he met Lucy's mother Kathryn, who was also a four-year player on the women's team. Their oldest daughter Abby is a sophomore center-back for St. A's, while younger brother Jack is a seventh grade hockey player at Belmont Hill.

"The whole vibe of our house is just very competitive and focused on sports," Lucy said. "I've always had a drive to win. It's been a big deal to me to win. Competing is such a big thing for me. I've always been that way even when I was a kid."

That competitiveness is also instilled with her on the ice. In two years with the CCHS girls' hockey program, she has 76 career points, was named to the MVC All-Conference team as a freshman, and then second team as a sophomore.

But soccer is her No. 1 sport. She has everything a coach wants in a player: extremely competitive, smart on the field, team oriented, incredibly fast and terrific skills, and so much more.

"Lucy's extremely physical. There's people out there who like to flop or dive, but she doesn't do that," said Hayden. "She doesn't want to fall. She wants to keep the ball on her foot. Technically she is very good with the ball in her feet. She's not just going to shoot the ball; she's going to dribble (past defenders)."

"She just does it all," added the coach.

You can email Jamie Pote at [email protected].