MONTESANO – With a seat at the banquet that is the girls soccer state playoffs on the line, King’s Way Christian had a large appetizer on Thursday.
In fact, the Knights feasted on goals.
With a 7-0 win over Eatonville in the District 4 semifinals, King’s Way clinched a berth in the Class 1A state playoffs. The Knights will face Montesano for the district title Saturday at Montesano High School.
“The girls are relentless,” King’s Way coach Tina Ellertson said. “They want to put the ball in the back of the net as many times as they can. They want to make sure they’re executing on the pitch. For us, that’s what has been so fun to coach.”
Last year, King’s Way made the state playoffs for the first time, losing a first-round match to University Prep.
That brief taste of the playoffs whetted the appetite for 12 returners on this year’s team. With the postseason in mind, King’s Way went 13-0 in the regular season, outscoring opponents 66-3. The Knights haven’t allowed a goal in nearly a month.
Six of those returners played on varsity last year as eighth graders because King’s Way didn’t have enough players to fill a varsity roster. This year, the team is stacked with 20 high-school-age players.
“We did it last year as eighth graders, so we know we can do it with an actual team of high schoolers,” MacKenzie Ellertson said.
Ellertson, the daughter of the head coach, is among the freshmen in her second year of varsity. She led the Trico League with 26 goals and also tallied 19 assists.
But it’s more than a one-player show, as King’s Way showed on Thursday. Payton Pulicella and Kate Roseburrough each scored twice. Pulicella and Meleah Kianu each added two assists while Maddie Veltkamp had a goal and an assist.
Between Ellertson, Pulicella and Roseburrough, three of King’s Way’s starting forwards are freshmen in their second year of varsity.
“Today we used the flanks really well to get into the box for the crosses,” Roseburrough said. “We were there for each other when we needed it.”
Those freshmen also credited the leadership of senior captains Kianu and Veltkamp.
Together, King’s Way hopes to establish its spot at the table of the state’s best Class 1A teams in its sixth year of play.
“We’re a smaller school and lots of people overlook us,” Pulicella said. “We’re working our hardest to prove to the state that we’re here.”
MONTESANO 2, SETON CATHOLIC 1 (Penalty kicks 4-2) – Seton Catholic narrowly missed securing a berth in the Class 1A state playoffs, falling in the District 4 semifinals in a penalty kick shootout.
After regulation and 10 minutes of overtime finished tied 1-1, Montesano won the shootout 4-2.
Seton Catholic (11-5) can still reach the playoffs if it beats Eatonville (10-6) in the third-place match on Saturday in Montesano.
After Montesano (14-3) took a 1-0 lead early in the second half, Tiana Scruggs tied the match with 23 minutes left. She headed in a long, looping shot that rebounded off the crossbar as Montesano’s goalkeeper leapt.
Seton goalkeeper Amy Fraizer made seven saves, including a diving stop on Montesano’s best scoring chance of the first half. She parried aside Samantha Stanfield’s free kick from just outside of the penalty area.
KING’S WAY CHRISTIAN 7, EATONVILLE 0
Eatonville
Goalkeeper saves – Autumn Holt 9.
King’s Way Christian
Goals (assists) – Maddie Veltkamp (Meleah Kainu), MacKenzie Ellertson (unassisted), Payton Pulicella (Kate Roseburrough), Roseburrough (Pulicella), Pulicella (Veltkamp), Roseburrough (Pulicella), Elise Schey (Kainu). Goalkeeper saves – Hannah Moats 2, Tasia Roderick 4.
Halftime – 4-0.
MONTESANO 2, SETON CATHOLIC 1
Montesano wins on penalty kicks 4-2
Seton Catholic
Goals (assists) – Tiana Scruggs (unassisted). Goalkeeper saves – Amy Fraizer 7.
Montesano
Goals (assists) – Makenzi Howard (Cheyann Bartlett) . Goalkeeper saves – Haylee Perkinson 3.
Halftime – 0-0.
