From the sports archives: Megan Duncanson provides spark for Crystal Springs girls' soccer team

Two weeks ago, sophomore Megan Duncanson scored five goals Jan. 15 in a 7-1 rout of Mercy-San Francisco. She followed that with four goals in the Gryphons’ three wins last week, giving her 13 goals on the season.

The big victory came last Wednesday when Crystal Srpings (4-0 in WBAL, 9-4) defeated rival Pinewood 4-1 to take over first place in the WBAL Skyline Division. Duncanson had two goals in the game to help the Gryphons remain undefeated in league play.

Because she has been unstoppable to the goal at the most critical juncture of Crystal Springs’ schedule, Duncanson has been named the San Mateo Daily Journal Athlete of the Week.

“For us, [Pinewood] was a big game to see who was going to take over that top spot,” Crystal Springs head coach Michael Flynn said. “And she came alive. … She steps up for those big games.”

Not that Duncanson requires any motivation when she steps onto the pitch. Although she’s still a sophomore, she is one of the morale leaders within the Gryphons’ ranks. And she’s one of the most vocal on the field.

“I’m generally very energetic,” Duncanson said. “It’s easy because soccer is something I love. … Whenever I step on the field, I’m trying to win.”

Duncanson said she’s been hyper-energetic for as long as she can remember. When she first started attending Gryphons games nearly a decade ago when her older sister Melissa — who finished her high school career as a senior during the 2008-09 season — was a Crystal Springs soccer standout.

Duncanson admits she didn’t watch a lot of soccer back in those days. She was usually busy horsing around, playing tag and actually kicking the soccer ball around with her younger brother Aiden while her older sis was tearing up the pitch with the likes of Crystal Springs great Veronica Perez.

That 2008-09 season was Flynn’s first year coaching the Gryphons. So he has overseen both Duncanson eras. And he notes the difference between the sisters is night and day.

“Mel, being a defender, was much more calm and collected in the back,” Flynn said. “Megan has got no off button.”

The Duncansons are a tight-knit soccer brood though. Growing up just down the street from West Hillsborough Park, the Duncansons used to play weekly soccer games. It was one of the great joys of Duncanson’s life and the beginnings of her soccer passion, she said.

She began playing organized soccer as a third grader for the Burlingame Soccer Club. The next year, she doubled down by joining AYSO.

And since she arrived at Crystal Springs, it has been impossible to keep her off the field. Duncanson started the first game of her freshman year last season and has started every game since.

“She’s just such a great kid to work with,” Flynn said. “She’s infectious and she’s always positive. ... She’s the Energizer bunny out there.”

It is Duncanson’s skills that impress her coach the most though. A two-sport athlete who specializes in the 200-yard dash on the Crystal Springs track-and-field team, her best weapon on the soccer field is speed.

“You can’t teach speed and she’s just so fast,” Flynn said. “And she likes to run at you with speed which makes defenders really uncomfortable.”

Duncanson also hopes to carry on the tradition that helped inspire the Gryphons to victory over Pinewood last week.

Before the game, Crystal Springs held a team meeting during which the seniors retold the story of the classic rivalry matchup with Pinewood during the 2012-13 season. In the classic game, with the score tied 1-1 going into the final minute, Crystal Springs’ Emma Marsano scored on a header off a corner kick to give the Gryphons a dramatic win.

With Crystal Srpings’ current crop of juniors being freshmen for that legendary game, Duncanson knows, when she is a senior, it will be the first generation of Gryphons teams without someone who actually played in the game to tell the tale. But she is already paying close attention so she can carry on the pregame tradition as a senior in 2016-17.

Crystal Springs has another big test Tuesday in hosting Castilleja. At 4-1-1 in WBAL Skyline Division play, the Gators could leapfrog into first place with a win. Castilleja has been scoring in bunches too, topping three opponents by a combined tally of 15-3 last week.

If the Gators want to be the class of the division though, they are going to have to go through the fiery Duncanson to do it. And with the roll she’s been on as of late, that is no easy task.