GIRLS SOCCER: Tahoma knocks off KL in battle of unbeatens

The Kentlake High girls soccer team has had its way in the early going this season, churning out four straight wins.

Tuesday night at Maxwell Field, the Falcons hit a bit of a wall.

Tahoma’s Brie Hooks scored a pair of goals, once in the 15th minute and again 45 minutes later, leading the Bears past the Falcons 2-1 in a South Puget Sound League North Division match between unbeaten teams.

What happened to the Falcons?

“We played the best team in the league, that’s what happened,” explained Kentlake coach Kyle Jones. “We were on the road and we lost to the best team in the league by one point. It’s the first time we’ve been tested.”

By no means, however, did the Falcons (4-1 with 12 points) fail the test against the Bears (4-0 with 12 points).

“We can take this test and learn from it,” Jones said.

Hooks helped Tahoma pull ahead in the 15th minute on an assist from Kaylee Osterman. Kentlake’s Laura Rayfield responded with an unassisted goal 12 minutes later, tying the game 1-1.

Tahoma didn’t put the game away until the 60th minute on another goal from Hooks, this one assisted by Becca Velasco.

Despite the loss, Jones remained pleased with his team’s performance and with the way the Falcons have started the season.

Kentlake came into the game not only unbeaten, but having outscored its opponents 19-2 for the season.

“Definitely there’s a nice feeling. To get out to a 4-0 start the way we’ve done it and to get as many fans as we had out tonight, the buzz is going around the school,” Jones said. “The girls are really into it. They didn’t play to their full potential tonight, but that’s a life lesson just like sports is a life lesson.”

With the win, Tahoma vaulted into first place the SPSL North race. The Bears play Kentwood at 3:30 p.m. on Thursday at French Field in a pivotal matchup between two of the North Division’s top teams. Kentlake doesn’t play again until Tuesday, when it hosts Kentwood at 7:30 p.m.