EDMONDS — The Kamiak Knights had their way with the Mount Vernon Bulldogs during the regular season. But it was the Bulldogs who had the last laugh.
Mount Vernon avenged a pair of regular season drubbings, winning on penalty kicks to defeat Kamiak 2-1 Saturday afternoon in a winner-to-state, loser-out 4A District 1 boys soccer game at Edmonds Stadium.
Calvin Schleppy scored in regulation, then Eli Strom made two saves in the shootout as the Bulldogs won the tiebreaker 3-1.
Mount Vernon (11-9), the tournament’s No. 4 seed, claimed the district’s second and final berth to the state tournament. The Bulldogs travel to face the District 5/8 No. 2 at a date and location to be determined.
Kamiak, the No. 2 seed which received a late goal from Brandon Wright to get the game into overtime, finished its season 11-6-2.
Saturday’s result was a stunner. Kamiak thrashed Mount Vernon twice during the regular season, winning by scores of 6-3 and 3-0. The senior-laden Knights also held a big advantage in experience against the youthful Bulldogs, who fielded five freshmen in the contest. But in the end that experience went for nought.
“I think our energy was a little different,” Kamiak coach Kosta Pitharoulis said. “Tonight’s prom, so the guys were kind of complaining that they had to be here. They have other things going on in their lives, and unfortunately for some of them soccer isn’t the highest of priorities, which I understand. But some of these guys really wanted it, and it’s a team game, so you need everyone wanting it.
“But props to (the Bulldogs),” Pitharoulis added. “They were undermanned, and they pulled it off.”
The first half that saw few quality scoring chances ended scoreless. The best chances fell to Kamiak at the beginning and end of the half. Just three minutes into the contest Chance Lord had a header cleared off the goal line by the Mount Vernon defense. Then in first-half extra time Eric Koegler had a header from a corner come back off the crossbar.
Mount Vernon then scored the opener 15 minutes into the second half. Justin Morrison played a long ball into the Kamiak penalty box. The Knights headed it up in the air and the ball fell right to Schleppy at the edge of the box. Schleppy brought the ball down, then fired a roller into the left corner to give the Bulldogs a 1-0 lead.
It looked as though Schleppy’s goal was going to hold up as the winner. But with less than three minutes remaining Kamiak conjured up an equalizer. Garrett Peterson’s long throw-in from the right was headed straight up by the Mount Vernon defense. Wright camped under it and nodded it into the goal to make it 1-1 and force the game to overtime.
After two scoreless OTs it went to penalty kicks. Kamiak converted just one of its four attempts, and fittingly it was Mount Vernon freshman Andres Flores who scored the penalty kick that ended the game.
At Edmonds Stadium
Goals—Calvin Schleppy (MV), Brandon Wright (K). Assists—none. Goalkeepers—Mount Vernon: Eli Strom. Kamiak: Tristan Bratvold. Records—Mount Vernon 11-9-0. Kamiak 11-6-2.
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