By ISAAC DEER
TopSports.news
Shawnee Heights' stellar season continued with a convincing 3-1 soccer victory over Kansas City-Washington in the opening round of Class 5A regional play Tuesay night at the Bettis Family Sports Complex.
The dominating outing from Shawnee Heights allowed the Thunderbirds to advance to play St. James Academy in Thurday's regional championship game.
Shawnee Heights soccer coach Nic Simons talks to his team after Tuesday's 3-1 Class 5A regional win over KC-Washington. [Photo by Isaac Deer/TSN]
Coming into Tuesday's playoff contest, Shawnee Heights had won four out of its last five games.
In addition, Shawnee Heights had outscored the opposition during its hot streak, 15 goals to three.
In the first half, although Shawnee Heights' dominated with its three goals, KC Washington controlled the pace of play. The Wildcats had the ball in Thunderbird territory for most of the half and showed a sense of urgency.
"We did enough offensively in the first half to put the game away, which was nice," Shawnee Heights coach Nic Simons said. "We struggled to get a rhythm in the midfield, but the shots we did have to go in were great shots for us."
No one would argue that the Thunderbird backline was the X factor in the first half. Excellent goalie play from Carter Freeman took away nearly nine goals that KC Washington was so close to having.
"Carter (Freeman) has been nothing short of excellent," Simons said. "I know we gave up that last goal with just a few minutes left in the game, but sometimes it happens. Carter is only a sophomore, which is exciting."
A backline consisting of Jose Guajardo-Arizpe, Tyler Lincoln, Jack Phillips, and Jatin Benson prevented the opposition from creating offensive efficiency and kept points off the scoreboard.
"Defensively, I can't praise everybody enough," Simons said. "We've done so well this season. KC-Washington is a great team. Our defense has come together as a unit. The defense did a good job shutting down KC Washington's best players."
Luckily, Shawnee Heights' shots on goal made the difference early. Two first-half goals from Jack Martin and a goal from Tyler Lincoln forced KC Washington to dig its own hole. Two of Shawnee Heights' goals came outside of the box. Efficient movement and a fast-paced attack forced KC Washington's hand.
Lincoln netted the game's first goal just six minutes into the first half. However, Martin's two first-half goals provided the Thunderbirds some insurance for the rest of the game.
Going into the second half, KC Washington made six different decisions with its lineup, trying to push Shawnee Heights on the outside instead of letting the United Kansas Conference champions tear them apart behind the penalty box.
While Washington's defensive adjustments were crucial to keeping Shawnee Heights off the board, the Thunderbird defense matched and added to the Wildcats' efforts keeping KC Washington off of the scoreboard for another 35 minutes.
KC Washington got a goal with 5:35 remaining in the second half. Abraham Ntarenganya was able to get a one-on-one opportunity and capitalized.
With the win, No. 5 seed Shawnee Heights will host No. 13 St. James Academy on Thursday at 6 p.m. at Bettis.
"I think St. James is a good team," Simons said. "We will certainly be looking and scouting them. I don't think this will be an easy game for us. We would have a chance if we played better than we did tonight. It will be a hard-fought game, but I have a lot of confidence in our team."
SHAWNEE HEIGHTS 3, KC-WASHINGTON 1
KC Washington 0 1 – 1
Shawnee Heights 3 0 – 0
Goals: Shawnee Heights – Martin 2, Lincoln. KC Washington – Ntarenganya.
Assists: Shawnee Heights – Poyner
