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Dane Ebanez won the 100-meter dash at a track meet early Saturday, then showed of his sprinter’s speed for the North Pole Patriots soccer team later in the day.

Ebanez overcame a bad back to score five goals as the Patriots claimed an 8-2 victory over the Monroe Catholic Rams at Allridge Field.

“He definitely won the 100-meter dash in the game tonight,” Monroe coach Nettie LaBelle-Hamer said.

Ebanez, playing at forward instead of his usual spot in the midfield, even gave himself problems with his speed. Sprinting after through-balls, Ebanez blazed past the Monroe defense so quickly he found himself on the wrong end of multiple offsides calls in the first half.

“He didn’t have to get (the goals) all by himself. Most of his balls were pretty good sent balls. A couple times he was called offsides and I think it was just because he was that much faster (than the defense),” Patriots coach Robert Martinez said.

The Rams got on the board first on the first of two goals from Nolan Burcell, but an adjustment at midfield soon had the Patriots finding their offensive rhythm.

Looking for a little more patience and ball control, the Patriots moved Travis Church and Phillip Hingst to the midfield, sparking their offense.

“Phillip and Travis tend to be a little more patient players,” Martinez said. “They tend to do a good job of working the ball back and forth amongst each other.”

Church and Hingst each had a goal, while Caleb Bizzarro provided the final tally.

Girls game

In the girls contest, the Rams couldn’t overcome having just seven players as they fell 6-1 to the Patriots, who played nine players.

“You just tell them to play hard. I appreciate the North Pole coach playing a couple down to make it a little more sporting,” Monroe coach Justin Racette said. “You tell them to go out there, have fun and play hard and see what happens.”

Mildred Rodgers had two goals for the Patriots while Chelsea Wilkes, Anita Halladay, Meghan McKinnell and Rachael Church each tallied one.

Christin Davis provided the Rams’ lone score, connecting off a penalty kick late in the second half.