KINGSTON — There is no doubt the Vikings girls soccer squad is No. 1 in North Kitsap.

The Vikings (4-1-3 overall) won the inaugural showdown between North Kitsap School District’s two high schools, completing a 6-0 victory against the Buccaneers (3-3 overall) Saturday afternoon in a non-league contest at Buccaneer Field in Kingston.

“The level of competition we have faced in the past has prepared us for a higher level competition than they (Kingston) have played against. It’s going to take a little time but Kingston will continue to improve their play. They just have to be patient,” said Vikings coach Pat Stickney. “There’s a lot of talent on that roster. Kingston has great athletes who are very quick and aggressive.”

Stickney, who maintains a close friendship with Buccaneers coach Craig Smith off the field, believes the Buccaneers soccer program is in good hands.

“I have no doubt the program will have success. They have a quality coach who runs a quality program,” he said. “Craig is a good friend, and I wish his team nothing but the best.”

The Vikings struck the back of the net in the 18th minute when Sydney Byers powered a shot in off an assist from Marissa Marcotte. Vikings stalwart forward Stephanie Skelly scored two back-to-back goals (38th, 39th) giving North a 3-0 lead at halftime.

In the second half Siara Byers, Karina Hoogstede, and Alyssa Wilder chipped in a goal apiece resulting in the final tally of six goals for the Vikings.

Vikings freshman Eyla Le finished the game with two assists and Alyssa Walker added one assist as well.

Despite giving up six goals, Smith said his team played well against one of the tougher teams in the Narrows League.

“We held them for the first 20 minutes,” he said. “We played with a lot of heart and matched up pretty well with them athletically. Our team gave it everything they had.”

Smith felt his team matched up with the Vikings in the speed category, but not skill wise.

“We don’t always have to run and gun. We have to ask ourselves, ‘How do we keep possessions?’” he said. “We’ll continue to work on settling the ball and making better decisions.”

The Buccaneers lack game experience, Smith said.

“What we need is more experience and games like this today gives us that experience,” he said. “I would like to play 10 more games like this one today. Playing in situations like this will help us improve.”

As the game progressed, it was evident that the majority of the players on the field knew each other as well as parents in the bleachers. Smith said he’d coached many of the players on the Vikings current varsity roster in the past.

“Two years ago I was a volunteer (at NK) and I helped coach the freshman and sophomores. Now many of those kids are on North’s varsity team,” he said. “Most players on both teams today knew each other.”