2nd half goals propel CK girls to victory over SK

Two second-half goals led the Central Kitsap girls soccer team to victory over South Kitsap Sept. 4 in Port Orchard.

It marked the first match of the season for SK, while CK beat North Kitsap Vikings 1-0 the day prior.

“We were just working on our different formations since it’s a non-league game, just testing people out in different spots,” SK coach Randi Gunyan said.

The first half saw no shots on goal for either squad, with the defenses prevailing early on.

Both CK and SK shared an equal amount of possession throughout the half with neither side able to gain an edge. Nonetheless, the Wolves managed to force the Cougars to throw the ball in more often in the first through tight man-to-man defense.

It wasn’t until SK wing/forward Alexis Trantham and forward/midfielder Payton Zamecnik tallied two shots with less than ten minutes remaining in the first half that either one of the teams was able to generate shots on goal, but the shots came aplenty afterwards.

Cougar sophomore Rylee Hunsaker managed to get a shot on goal closer to midfield with under five minutes remaining, but SK goalkeeper Clara Fournier was able to prevent the goal from reaching the back of the net wth ease.

Fellow CK sophomore Payton Mazurek generated the best scoring attempt for either squad in the half with an up-close-and-personal shot on goal within two minutes of the half ending, but couldn’t get the ball to find the back of the net, keeping the game scoreless at halftime.

“We talked about how we wanted to dictate our own game in the second half,” CK senior Maleia Dayao said. “We felt like we were kind of going along with them in the first half instead of playing how we usually play to the end [of the first half].”

The beginning of the second half drew many parallels to the first, with SK defenseman Kylee Hamilton-Nation generating the only shot on goal attempt through the first ten minutes of the half.

Defense continued to be the focal point for both squads, with both teams producing turnovers around the midfield mark and inhibiting any offensive opportunities. Nonetheless, CK freshman Maya Yamaguchi generated the first shot on goal of the half for either squad off a breakaway attempt to drive in a goal, but Fournier was able to tally a save, keeping the game scoreless with 25 minutes remaining.

Nonetheless, the shots on goal began to amp up as the game approached the end, with both teams trying to generate offense. CK continued to produce turnovers over the middle of the field, giving themselves opportunities to put goals on the board.

With less than 10 minutes remaining, CK senior Prestle Agana managed to score an up-close-and-personal goal on Fournier, giving the Cougars a 1-0 lead. Dayao followed the score up with one of her own, not even five minutes later, making the score of the game 2-0 with little time remaining.

“I think it was like, we knew we had it in us the entire game,” Agana said. “It got to the point where we just weren’t going to be happy with the tie.”