ROYAL – The Knights (13-3) defeated Omak 5-0 in the first round of the 1A district tournament Thursday. Head coach Jens Jensen said the Knights became dangerous once they settled into the game.  

“Sometimes we just seem to struggle to kind of settle in and realize that we have more time than we think we do. When they finally figured out, ‘Oh, I got time,’ then they're able to bring the ball down, they're able to play feet, and people are able to move off the ball, and we became way more dangerous,” Jensen said.  

The Knights came out strong in the first half and put pressure on the Omak defense. Jensen said they put walls of defenders between the goal and the Knights' offense. This strategy forced the Knights to take them head-on and win one-on-one situations.  

Halfway through the first half, the Knights jumped out to a 2-0 lead, which included a Lauren Wardenaar shot on goal from the right side of the field to the top left corner of the net. With the lead, Jensen was more emphatic to his players to settle into the game and slow their pace.  

“I'm saying, ‘Hey, just relax. Bring the ball down, find feet,'” he said.  

During halftime, Jensen said they had a talk as a team to change their mood going into the second half and focus on being more positive. He felt like it proved to be beneficial.  

“I was being fairly negative. I was super frustrated. We were able to change the mood. Some of that I have to own as a coach, and just say, ‘Hey, whether you're frustrated or not, you got to find a way to focus on the positive,’” Jensen said.  

In the second half, the Knights came out aggressively and pushed the pace against Omak. The Knights strategically put themselves in positions to set up corner kicks, which led to scores by Briseydi Pacheco and Taylor Webb from a short distance. Jensen said they played the corner a lot to avoid turnovers and give the Knights multiple options to score.  

“Our best option is to attack the near post, and if we get by, great. If we don't, we get a corner, and that's just as good. It's much better than playing back and turning it over,” he said.  

Pacheco is aggressive with the ball in her possession. Jensen said the freshman forward likes to attack the goal. However, he feels she’ll need to hone some of her skills over the next few seasons to better play that to their advantage.  

“She's a poacher in that way, sometimes also it's real frustrating when you're like, ‘No, we need to worry about keeping possession,’ if she can clean up her touches and get her head up and start changing direction, she could be a real handful,” Jensen said.  

Grace Soliz essentially sealed the Knights' win with a successful penalty kick to put them up 5-0 with little time left on the clock.  

With the Knights' win, they advance to the second round of the 1A district tournament and are one step closer to a state tournament appearance. Jensen said teams this season have played them differently in part due to their improved attack. He said teams this year are making the Knights prove they can beat their defensive formations. This is something he feels they have gotten better at over the course of the season.  

“It's a whole new kind of ball game, because this team is more attacking, because this team is more of a threat. Learning how to break a team down and to figure out how we can get around the corners is something that's been good. It’s been different and better with this team,” he said.  

The Knights will travel to Naches Valley on Saturday to take on the Rangers at 3 p.m.  

BOX SCORE:  

ROYL: 2-3: 5
OMAK: 0-0: 0 

    The Knights form a wall to block a shot attempt from an Omak player. Head Coach Jens Jensen said the Knights were aiming to capitalize on corner kicks.
  

    Maggie Frank (14) boots the ball back into play against Omak on Thursday. Head Coach Jens Jensen said the Knights came out more positive in the second half.
  

    Grace Soliz (1) kicks a penalty kick for the Knights to put them up 5-0.