Prep Girls Soccer Roundup: Kelso, R.A. Long keep up winning ways
Force Field: Goals at a premium for most local teams
Jordan Nailon / Blast Zone Media
Kelso opens league play with shutout over Prairie
The Hilanders used bookend goals by Karsyn Ross to open up their 3A Greater St. Helens League schedule with a 2-0 win over Prairie at Schroeder Field, Tuesday, in girls soccer action.
Ross opened up the scoring in the sixth minute with an unassisted goal. That 1-0 lead lasted through the intermission and all the way into the final stoppage time when Ross found the back of the net again.
Mikalah Boucher and Kalli Carter helped Kelso keep the pressure on the Falcons with three shots each.
Danica Holts turned in three saves between the pipes for Prairie.
On the other end, goalie Makenna Fitzpatrick turned in seven saves to help preserve the shutout for Kelso.
“(We had) standout defensive play tonight from Amiyah Emerson,” Kelso coach Kyle Tatro said. “She made critical tackles at key times in the game to keep Prairie from shooting opportunities.”
Kelso (5-1, 1-0 league) will play at Mountain View on Thursday for another 3A GSHL contest, before heading to Centralia on Saturday at noon for a non-league match.
Lumberjills fire at will on Hudson’s Bay
With head coach Taylor Wallace missing in action, R.A. Long didn’t miss a beat in a 9-1 win over Hudson’s Bay at Longview Memorial Stadium.
Wallace was serving a suspension after being ejected in the final moments of a 2-0 win over Mark Morris last week. However, that didn’t slow the Lumberjills in the least as they scored four goals in the first 11 minutes of game play.
Alice Anderson opened the scoring in the first minute off an assist from Addison Hartley, and that duo connected again in the fourth minute to make it deja vu all over again for the Eagles. Anderson would finish with a hat trick after notching her third goal in the 18th minute with an assist from Madeleine Smith.
The Lumberjills saw Hartley score in the ninth minute off an assist from Amayah Salas, and took a 5-0 lead in the 11th minute when Laura Nikolajsen set up Oliva Durrett for a score.
Josie Sully added a score in the 23rd minute off an assist from Nikoajsen to give the Jills a 6-0 advantage at the intermission.
After the break, the Lumberjills emptied their bench and began the second half playing 9 versus 11 on the field.
Still, Sully scored again in the 51st minute thanks to an assist from Durrett, and three minutes later Lulu Pfaff found the back of the net following a well-placed pass from Anderson. Pfaff wrapped up the scoring for the hosts in the 58th minute with an assist from Ella Blair-Breidt.
Hudson’s Bay was finally able to break the seal in the 75th minute when Jaylynn Wing setup Grace Avalos for a late goal.
R.A. Long (5-0, 3-0 league) will play at Hockinson on Thursday at 7 p.m.
Castle Rock blanked by King’s Way
The Rockets allowed eight goals before intermission on the way to a 8-0 loss to King’s Way Christian in 1A Trico League girls soccer action, Tuesday, in Castle Rock.
Castle Rock coach Ashley Fulton described the opening 40 minutes of play as a “sleepy start,” but left the pitch pleased with her team’s shutout effort in the second half.
“Outside mids Valerie Shetler and Peyton Anderson played phenomenally, never giving up despite the scoreboard,” Fulton said. “With a few tweaks to both the defense and the offense we were able to start making the ball move around more how we wanted it to.”
And while the Rockets are still searching for their first win, they’ve had flashes of brilliance already.
Last Thursday the Rockets lost to Fort Vancouver by a score of 4-1, with Vallies scoring her first goal of the season in the second half. Two days prior to that Castle Rock managed to secure a 1-1 tie with Stevenson in its first league contest of the season. Sarah Johnson scored the equalizer for The Rock in the second half against the Bulldogs.
“Defense did an amazing job keeping the ball out of their back half most the game,” Fulton said in reference to the draw with Stevenson. “Ava Vaughan had her goalie debut and had some amazing saves.”
Castle Rock (0-3-1, 0-2-1 league) will host La Center on Thursday at 5 p.m.
Other Scores You Might Care About
Ridgefield 6, Mark. Morris 0
Columbia River 8, Woodland 0
Seton Catholic 6, Kalama 0
King's Way 8, Castle Rock 0
Warrenton 6, Ilwaco 0