KINGSTON — For the first 65 minutes of Kingston High School’s first girls soccer game, the Buccaneers outplayed their opponents from Port Townsend in every facet of the match. Unfortunately for KHS players, they simply weren’t able to capitalize during their show of prowess.
The same did not hold true for PT, which found its rhythm in the final 10 minutes of the game and scored three goals (70th minute, 74th, 77th) resulting in a 3-0 victory Saturday afternoon at Buccaneer Field.
“I thought we outplayed them for the first 65 minutes. I thought we were going to win it,” said Buccaneers coach Craig Smith. “Our defense pressured them all game and kept us in the game.”
Smith said the Buccaneers’ mid-fielders and defenders did an excellent job shutting down PT’s offensive attack for most of the contest. Whenever Port Townsend would mount an attack, Kingston’s mid-fielders hustled back on defense creating a seven player wall that proved difficult to penetrate.
“Our game plan was geared towards stopping their offense. Our team did what the coaches asked of them,” Smith said. “We disrupted their offense for most of the game. Port Townsend couldn’t get two or three touches on the ball. Our defensive pressure frustrated them.”
In the end, it wasn’t so much PT as it was the sizzling 80 degree temperatures that eventually took its toll on the Bucs, Smith said.
“It was hard for us to keep up the pace we had going,” he said. “We just couldn’t keep it up and wore down.”
While the Buccaneers defense showed how formidable of a unit it can be, their offense failed to find the net during the first 80 minutes of the season. It wasn’t for lack of trying, though. The Bucs finished with 11 shots on goal.
“We’re still looking for that first goal,” Smith said. “We have to work on our transition game to create more scoring opportunities. We need to make more things happen offensively and move the ball up the field.”
The Buccaneers will get a chance to avenge their loss this week when they travel to Port Townsend for a rematch at 6:45 p.m. Thursday.
