The Kentwood girls soccer team came up big Saturday afternoon at Art Crate Stadium on the grounds of Bethel High in Graham.
Behind a goal and an assist from Rachel Bindl, the Conquerors upended Gig Harbor 3-0 in a West Central District state-qualifying game. With the win, the Conquerors (14-0-4) earned their fifth state berth in as many years. Kentwood will play at Eastlake at 7 p.m. on Tuesday in the opening round of the state playoffs.
“We played well,” said Kentwood coach Aaron Radford. “I kind of wanted the girls to come out fired up and be aggressive, to work toward the goal and put (Gig Harbor) under a lot of pressure. They did a good job of doing that.”
Indeed they did as Alex White collected Kentwood’s first goal in the 10th minute, giving the Conquerors an immediate 1-0 lead. Bindl added her goal 17 minutes later on an assist from Clarissa Hammer. Kentwood’s Kiana Kraft made it 3-0 in the 37th minute on an assist from Bindl.
The deficit was far too much for Gig Harbor to overcome against a Kentwood team that has allowed just two scores all season.
Kentwood’s Courtney Johnson and Megan Walburn teamed up in goal to notch their 13th shutout of the season.
• Tahoma 1, Kentlake 0: The Falcons (9-6-3) hung with the Bears (14-2-2), but were unable to penetrate a stout Tahoma defense. Tahoma’s Lauren Duty ended the 0-0 tie in the 76th minute with an unassisted goal.
The loss ended Kentlake’s season one game win away from the state tournament. The Falcons haven’t advance to state since 2003.
VOLLEYBALL: KW moves on KR eliminated in 2
It didn’t come easy, but the Kentwood High volleyball team got it done this past weekend.
The Conquerors won three of four games during the West Central District tournament held at Kentwood High and earned the tournament’s No. 5 seed to the state tournament, which begins Friday, Nov. 13. Kentwood will be making its sixth straight state appearance.
Kentridge, the only other Kent-based team in the tournament, lost its first two matches and was eliminated from postseason play.
The top six teams in the 16-team field earned state berths.
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