An opportunity presented itself to the Kentlake High School girls soccer team to make a statement against the league leading White River Hornets on Oct. 22 at home. The opportunity passed the Falcons by and White River went on to shut out Kentlake, 2-0, for the Hornets’ 10th consecutive win since Sept. 24.
“I saw a lot of fight. There were a lot of adjustments. We needed to make adjustments late game, but it kind of took us too long,” Kentlake Head Coach Joe Grijalva said.
White River has proven they are top class in terms of the NPSL and the state, a side that has allowed just one goal combined in their last six games. This mounted a tough challenge for a Kentlake attack that scored eight against Todd Beamer High School, but was shutout by Auburn Mountainview High School two games prior.
“We just need to play off our wings and central forward, finding their feet a bit more. That way we aren’t trying to just lob ones over the top. We talk about getting them involved to where we can play off of them and they can play off of each other,” Grijalva said
Grace Engebo holds the ball for Kentlake. Ben Ray / Sound Publishing
White River was methodical and tactical early on and caused problems for Kentlake, and inside of five minutes scored the game’s first goal. A pass dropped back to goalkeeper Grace Engebo didn’t get cleared as far as the team was expecting, leaving them vulnerable. White River sent it back into the penalty area and caused some confusion. White River’s Lillian Banks pounced on the loose ball and scored.
“They are a physical team and they are very talented,” Grijalva said about White River.
The entire first half was played on the Kentlake defensive third of the field. Very rarely were the Falcons able to flip the field and put pressure on the White River defense. A high line and aggressive press put a lot of pressure on the Kentlake backline. A backline that was playing short-handed and needed a pair of Falcons in Audrey Franklin and Layni Culp to step up.
Stepping into unfamiliar roles and holding White River to just one goal a half, and an odd goal at that, was very impressive in the eyes of Grijalva. “This is a backline that has been banged up. Our two centerbacks are out. For them to step up off the bench and compete the way they did, they did a heck of a job.”
Giuliana Fioretti controls the ball for White River. Ben Ray / Sound Publishing
The second half was a much more back and forth affair. Kentlake found a couple of chances — Lauren Tripp drew a couple of penalties and sent a pair of good cross attempts into the box that were dealt with by the Hornets.
“The one thing we needed to do was match their physicality and we did that. For that, I am ecstatic about it,” Grijalva said.
In the 63rd minute, Hornet senior Jordyn Daigle rifled a shot from the right side of the field just outside the 18-yard box to put the game on ice for White River. Holding the Hornets to a fluky goal and an incredible strike off Daigle’s foot is all right for Grijalva.
“It was a banger. It’s one of these minor things where if you don’t close out fast enough, that could be the decider. For a banger and a fluky one, I’ll take it. We are getting to where we need to be to be competitive with the better teams and I feel like we are right there,” Grijalva said.
Kentlake finishes off the regular season on the road against Thomas Jefferson High School on Oct. 28 at Federal Way Memorial Field. The Falcons shut out Thomas Jefferson 4-0 back on Sept. 30, but the Raiders are playing a better and more competitive brand of soccer in the final weeks of the season.
“We are back to competing. You take a couple of steps back and reset and figure out what you need to do to be successful. I think we are getting to that point where we are figuring it out at the right time,” Grijalva said.
Shannon Mclain dribbles the ball down the sideline for Kentlake. Ben Ray / Sound Publishing
Kentlake is two points behind Decatur and two points in front of Thomas Jefferson. A win and Decatur loss or tie will move Kentlake to third in the 3A NPSL. But a loss to Thomas Jefferson would drop Kentlake to fifth. “They are coachable, they leave it out on the field. It’s one thing where if I ask for adjustments. Other teams I have coached, it takes a game or two. This group does it on the fly. We were down 2-1 against Decatur and won 5-3,” Grijalva said.
Kentlake is going to look to continue to make adjustments as the regular season comes to a close on Oct. 28 as the postseason looms in the distance.
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