Eveleen Hahn of Lake Wylie is named top N.C. player

Charlotte Catholic soccer player Eveleen Hahn was recently named North Carolina Soccer Coaches Association Player of the Year.

Hahn, 16, of Lake Wylie is a rising senior at Charlotte Catholic and has verbally committed to play college soccer at the University of South Carolina.

This past season, she led Catholic to a 22-2 record. She scored 41 goals in 24 games to go with 19 assists. In three years playing on the varsity team, she already has eclipsed the 100-goal mark.

Hahn said her head coach Gary Hoilett told her she was in the running for the award.

“I was surprised,” she said. “There is a lot of good players. There was a chance, but I didn’t think I would get it.”

Hoilett has been coaching soccer at Catholic for 26 years. Hoilett said he wasn’t surprised Hahn got the award.

“She has a love for playing,” he said. “You see how passionate she is for the game. She enjoys playing. She loves training and being on the field. As a result of it, she is able to do the things that she does.”

An All-State player for North Carolina, Hahn has spent her whole life living in the Lake Wylie area, and has always attended Catholic schools. She started playing soccer when she was four-years old and said she loves the team aspect of the game, but also enjoys scoring.

Hahn also plays for the Discoveries Soccer Club and was recently selected to the United Soccer Coaches High School Girls All-American team. She is the first girls’ soccer All-American in the sport in Charlotte Catholic history, Hoilett said.

“It is good for the program and other players on the team,” Hoilett said. “Her talent for scoring is what everyone sees immediately, but it is her ability to win games for us that sets her apart. She is a constant threat.”

Going into her senior year, Hahn said she wants to top her 41-goal performance from this past season. Having selected her college destination, the will be less pressure, so she can concentrate on the season.

The University of North Carolina also was in the running for Hahn’s talents, but South Carolina made an offer first.

“I like that it is close,” she said. “Their soccer program is really good. After I went to USC, I knew it was where I wanted to go.”

This story was originally published July 25, 2018 at 5:03 PM.