It was a matter of proving everybody wrong.
That being the case, the Kentlake High girls soccer team certainly got it done Thursday afternoon at Wilson Playfield in Kent.
Behind senior Kayla Maletich’s goal in the 64th minute, the Falcons knocked off Kentwood 2-1 in an early season South Puget Sound League North Division showdown.
And while it may be early in the season, the win could not have been bigger for the Falcons?
How big?
For starters, Kentwood, which took third at state last fall, has won two straight league crowns and is a consensus favorite among league coaches to win another this season. In addition, the Conquerors entered the contest having won or tied 41 straight SPSL North games.
“I think everyone (on our team) wants to prove everybody wrong,” said Kentlake’s Laura Rayfield, the North Division’s defending league MVP. “We definitely have the focus and the drive to beat any team that we play.”
As much has been evident during the season’s first week. A week that, for Kentlake, included a 3-0 victory over league power Auburn Riverside. Maletich picked up a goal in that victory as well.
Adding to the magnitude of Thursday’s win for the Falcons is the fact that they haven’t beaten the Conquerors since Oct. 28, 2004. Kentlake entered the showdown having dropped its last 10 matches against Kentwood. The Conquerors had not lost a league match since Sept. 25, 2007, when they fell to Tahoma, 3-2.
“This is huge,” said first-year Kentlake coach Angy Mathena, who coincidentally enough is a 1991 Kentwood High graduate. “To our girls, this was the Super Bow. They were really excited.”
Rayfield agreed.
“Oh my goodness, we were so excited,” she said. “As soon as we got our first goal, we were just ecstatic.”
Early on, it appeared as though the Conquerors were going to roll to another victory. Kentwood’s Megan McNally opened the scoring in the sixth minute, depositing a goal on a free kick. And while Kentwood had many other chances after that initial goal, the Conquerors were unable to find the back of the net.
“We had a lot of chances. I can’t say we didn’t put up a good fight,” said Kentwood coach Aaron Radford, whose team opened the season just days earlier with a 3-0 victory over Jefferson. “(Kentlake) put pressure on us. I thought they played very physical, energized and an overall smart game.”
Kentlake’s Callen Shelton helped the Falcons tie the score 1-1 with a goal in the 38th minute.
Maletich scored what proved to be the game winner 28 minutes later.
The goal was big on multiple fronts. Not only did it help the Falcons pull out the victory, but it also cracked a Kentwood defense that has been among the state’s best for the last three years. The Kentwood defense allowed just one goal during league play all of last season.
The loss may very well serve as a wake-up call to the Conquerors, Radford noted.
“I hope it is a wake-up call,” Radford said. “I don’t want to have to live through too many of these and have that become our season trend. If it’s something they can use as motivation, then by all means.”
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