A pair of first-half goals from freshman Eliza Jurcak highlighted a unstoppable offensive pursuit that helped the Bainbridge Spartans punch their ticket to state for the first time since 2013, winning their Nov. 7 district semifinal match 3-0 over the Kingston Buccaneers.
The Spartans continued to benefit from a postseason slate of opponents chock full of 2A Olympic League, against whom Bainbridge has remained unbeaten. It was their third win this season against a Kingston squad seeking to put an exclamation point on its own breakout season.
Bainbridge would immediately control the game, keeping the Bucs on their heels and taking shot after shot at the goal. All three Spartan scores would find the net in the first half, Jurcak’s pair joined by a score from junior Izzi Pujolar.
Still the shots kept coming from the Spartans in the second half, a fiery response from a team that had edged out a 2-1 victory two days earlier over Port Angeles on penalties. It had been the first time all season that any team had scored against them on home Spartan turf, breaking an eight-match streak of shutouts.
“We were moving the ball better but were also finishing,” Spartan coach Katie Drovdahl said. “They had the satisfaction of finishing those shots, and it was good motivation too.”
The Spartans will advance to the district championship at Mount Tahoma High School Nov. 9 where a familiar adversary in the North Kitsap Vikings will await them. The Vikings won their district semifinal 3-0 on the road against Fife. Bainbridge went 2-0 against NK in the regular season.
“That’s always a really good matchup. They always bring their game, and we just need to stick to ours,” Drovdahl said.
Kingston will get one more shot to end its own lengthy state drought in an elimination contest at home, where the Bucs will take on Eatonville Nov. 9 at noon.
Elsewhere in district action, Klahowya will look to extend its season Nov. 9 after losing the district championship match 1-0 in overtime vs. Bellevue Christian. The Eagles will return to Vashon Island High School to play Annie Wright for the second and final state qualifying spot.
