Two heartbreaking losses ended North and Central Kitsap’s state playoff runs Nov. 8.
The Vikings fell 2-0 to Hockinson while playing at home, while CK fell 3-2, 4-3 in penalties to Mount Spokane on the road.
The Vikings looked to break the ice within the first couple of minutes when Evelyn Beers fired a shot from the top left of the box, and the goalie deflected it. Olivia Cary had an opportunity on a wide-open net but failed to strike the ball.
Afterward, Hockinson took over the game. In the 23rd minute, Hockinson fired a free kick near midfield that goalie Campbell Weible pushed out of bounds. Hockinson responded on the corner kick with a header from Abigail Dombrow into the back of the net. “I knew about [Dombrow],” NK coach Travis Rider said. “She is good, fast and strong, and we had nothing for it.”
Shortly after, Hockinson began to park the bus with five or six defenders to hold the lead. Neither side was able to find a clear scoring chance for the rest of the half.
NK looked to light up the scoreboard in the second half until the stadium lights turned off for about 15 minutes. Once the lights turned back on, NK players started to get injured due to the temperatures. “It doesn’t help when the lights go out and you have a hard time staying warm on a cold night,” Rider said.
When Beers went down, Hockinson took advantage of the left side of the field. Anneka Vossler made their second goal halfway through the second half. NK had a couple of opportunities but could not connect. But Rider said he is proud and excited for next season already.
“There is a big impact on sophomores and juniors on this team right now,” Rider said. “There were loads of girls who progressed on JV. We had a great league season and a good run at districts and made it to the district championship.”
Meanwhile, CK scored two goals in the first half, one on a deflection and another from a rebound from the crossbar. Although goalie Rachael Remnet shut down Mount Spokane most of the game, they were able to tie it up 2-2.
Mount Spokane nearly ended the match in extra time. But Remnet leaped to make the save to force the shootout on penalty kicks, with the home team squeaking out a 4-3 win.
