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Camas soccer finds its next big scorer

By Andy Buhler, Columbian Staff Writer
Published: March 15, 2019, 11:10am

CAMAS — Dan Macaya reckons the last time Camas had a completely dominant goal scorer was 2014.

That was when former standout Nate Beasley was a senior.

Perhaps there’s soon to a be a new goal-seeking forward to step up. If you ask junior Dauda Woodruff, he’s next in line. Before the season, he told Macaya, the Papermakers’ second-year head coach, as much.

“I want to be the next big goal scorer,” Woodruff said. “That’s what I told him. I’m still working on it.”

Macaya’s offense relies on goalscorers, and the Papermakers believe Woodruff has the tools to be their lead option.

“Pace, strength, a bit of danger,” Macaya said, describing Woodruff’s game.

In Macaya’s second season at the helm, he’s one step further in the process of implementing his offensive-minded, attack-heavy philosphy.

It’s a tectonic shift from the previous two decades of Camas soccer, which was defense-centric under longtime coach Roland Minder, who Macaya succeeded last spring.

The dynamic junior has scored one goal through the first four games of Camas’ season, but Macaya sees in him the potential to flourish.

On Thursday night, during a 1-0 Camas win, he was elusive with the ball at his feet and drew close attention from the Ridgefield back line throughout.

Woodruff is a part of an attack that inlcudes sophomore Ethan Jud, junior Zander Samodurov and senior Tybalt Thornberry.

Though he didn’t score, Woodruff took a handful of shots and created havoc at times for Ridgefield’s defense.

Woodruff, originally from Sierra Leone, attended Camas as a freshman before moving to San Diego to go to the boarding school Army and Navy Academy for his sophomore and part of his junior year.

He continued to play club in Southern California, where he played with an LA Galaxy-affiliated club, before missing home in Camas. Woodruff has been back since around Christmas, and he described life since as filled with school and soccer.

During Thursday evening’s performance, which featured a lot of shots and “sloppy play,” Woodruff saw a lot of promise.

Luke Davidson scored a header off a corner from Samodurov in the 20th minute to give Camas its only goal of the game.

In the 54th, Woodruff got the ball in space in the attacking third, but had his shot blocked at the top of the box. The deflection bounced to forward Zander Samodurov, who sent a shot rocketing off the cross bar.

The Papermakers (3-1) created three legitimate goal scoring opportunities were thwarted by Camas being offside.

Woodruff is confident the early kinks are simply indicitave of the time of year — preseason — and will be worked out.

Macaya concurred.

“It’s going to come,” Macaya said. “I’m sure he’s frustrated. you get those type of chances and you get frustrated. … We have good weapons, it’s just a matter of getting it done.”

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Columbian Staff Writer