Maryland women’s soccer coach Ray Leone on Tuesday confirmed standout freshman forward Mikayla Dayes would miss the rest of the season to injury.
Dayes seemingly twisted her leg while challenging for the ball in a 1-0 victory against Richmond on Aug. 31. Though she didn’t make contact with another player, she remained down for several minutes and departed the match on a cart.
After the Richmond contest, forward Chelsea Jackson said it was hard to lose Dayes because of her energy, pace and intelligence. Now, the Terps (6-1-1) will be without the rookie for their final 10 games.
“We do have a deep bench,” Jackson said. “The important part to focus on was coming in and bringing the same energy that Mikayla had during the [Richmond] game.”
Despite not playing in the Terps’ past three contests, Dayes remains tied as the team’s top scorer and distributor. She tallied three goals and two assists in just four games before her injury.
Like Jackson, Leone feels the team’s depth will help them overcome the loss of Dayes’ production on the front line.
“We’ve got some experienced players up there,” Leone said after a 2-1 win against George Mason on Sept. 3. “They know how to play with each other.”
Dayes’ absence is one of a number of injuries the Terps have dealt with this season.
Forward Alyssa Poarch, who has been invited to United States National Training Camp for the youth side, was ruled out for the season with a torn ACL. More recently, Jackson and forward Jarena Harmon picked up knocks against Rutgers.
Forwards Madison Turner and Kady Badham have seen extended time up front since Dayes’ injury.
The injuries have had a domino effect, Leone said on Tuesday.
“This is why we develop them to play other positions,” he said, “because that’s exactly what’s going on with us right now.”
