After falling out of the first round of the Class 4A state high school girls soccer playoffs the past four years, Kentridge hopes to win its first state title this season.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cI think they have had what is takes for the last couple years,\u201d fifth-year coach Sherri Rolfs said. \u201cThey are a very determined group of girls. We have the talent we need. I will be very disappointed if we don\u2019t move on.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Last year, the Chargers lost to Gig Harbor in the state tournament.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cJust making the Sweet 16 is a big accomplishment,\u201d Rolfs said. \u201cIt is nice to move on, so we are hoping we have a little bit of luck and just maybe more experience so we don\u2019t panic when things aren\u2019t going right or when something bad happens.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The team hopes this will be the year it can breakthrough.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cI know that when we get to this point it is like a brick wall and is something that we are just trying to knock down and get over,\u201d senior forward Peyton Chick said. \u201cIt is like when you a run marathon and have the brick wall at the 20-mile mark and just can\u2019t get past it. This is our year that we are trying \u2014 I think we are giving it all \u2014 to get past it this year.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The Chargers are off to an 9-0 start after beating Mount Rainier 3-0 in a game on Tuesday night.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cOur goal is to be undefeated and just to work as a team to reach our goals,\u201d said junior midfielder Olivia Van der Jadt.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Kentridge has won the South Puget Sound League North 4A championship the past two seasons and won the 4A West Central District 3 tournament last year.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The team\u2019s motto is \u201cStrong alone. Unstoppable together.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cI think that really works because when we do all show up and want to play as a team together we can connect the ball from anywhere on the field,\u201d senior defender Maya Gutierrez said of the motto.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Junior defender Grace Klinkenberg agreed.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cEveryone individually are amazing players so when we show up and play as a team we are unstoppable,\u201d Klinkenberg said. \u201cWe have the right chemistry.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Rolfs said the one of the team\u2019s strengths is its depth.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have a handful of girls who can score goals at anytime so our scoring is not just dominated by one player,\u201d she said. \u201cIf a team chooses to mark a player we have other weapons in our arsenal. We have got a pretty good spread of our goals and our assists. We are pretty balanced. That is pretty big advantage for us \u2026 We don\u2019t rely on any one player.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Kentridge\u2019s undefeated status hasn\u2019t come easy. The team has faced tough matches against Tahoma and Todd Beamer, the only team to beat the Chargers last year during the regular season.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cOne of the things that I have noticed when we play tougher teams we always show up,\u201d Van der Jadt said. \u201cWe played great against those two teams \u2014 Beamer and Tahoma. We played all right against some of the lower teams.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Kentridge is often its own worst enemy on the field, Chick said.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not the other team that is stopping us from winning. It\u2019s ourselves,\u201d she said. \u201cWe mentally think it is an easy game. That is something we have to get over. When it is the big teams we show up and it is amazing what we can do. \u201c<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The team is tight-knit, with a core group of juniors who have played soccer together since they were young, and most of the players crossing paths at sometime during their club careers.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is such as an amazing connection,\u201d Chick said. \u201cYou don\u2019t realize how connected you are to someone until you show up to high school soccer and you are like \u2018Oh, I played against you. I played with you.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Rolfs said Kentridge has strong junior varsity and C teams, but it might be a couple of years before those players are able to move up to the varsity level. The varsity team has four seniors, 13 juniors and one freshman.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cIt might be frustrating for those (JV and C team) players because not a lot is going to open up next year,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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