ROYAL CITY – The Royal City Knights soccer team (7-3-2) earned a close victory Tuesday evening with a score in the last few minutes of regulation to win 1-0 over the Wahluke Warriors (7-5). The result of the game places the Knights in third and the Warriors in fourth in the South Central Athletic Conference. 

“I feel like we were very connected today,” said Knights senior Taylor Webb. “The struggle was getting those shots on goal, but I think we can fix it.” 

The teams showed a strong defensive display in the first half, with both of the teams’ goalies making critical stops throughout and trading possession of the ball in the middle of the field. As the half wound down, both teams had opportunities, but neither scored a goal. 

The second half went similarly, with both teams staying persistent in halting one another’s goal attempts. It was in the last few minutes of the game when Webb took an opportunity and scored a goal to win the game 1-0. 

“There were two perfect balls beforehand and I was like, ‘I have to hit the third one here,’” she said. 

Ashya Erazo from the Warriors said the team was very proud of the effort that they put up against the Knights and that this game showed how much they’ve improved since the last matchup between these two teams. 

“I was very proud of the girls, proud of everybody,” said Erazo. “Even though we did unfortunately lose 1-0, we put up a fight until the end. Even when they scored on us, we didn’t put our heads down.” 

The Warriors have been using a defensive mentality and constantly boosting each other on the field to help garner a winning mindset this season, she said. 

The big lesson for the Knights to take out of Tuesday’s matchup is that moving forward, they need to figure out how to play against teams primarily focused on defense, said Knights head coach Jens Jensen.  

“Usually, we’re the team that’s trying to be organized defensively and keep people in front of us,” said Jensen. “In the game, I think the goal was always coming, but we left it until awful late.” 

In the future, he said he would like to see the Knights try to position themselves better to force their opponent to either let them through or kick it out of bounds to allow the Knights to have opportunities at corners. The other option would be to take shots at the goal from a distance, but this was proven to be more complicated against a defensive opponent. 

The Warriors head coach Cele Lopez said he was pleased with the fight that the team showed on the field Tuesday. He said the team truly gave 100% effort against the Knights despite having struggles in some areas of the game. 

“As a coach, that’s what you want to see,” said Lopez. “Most of the time we just focus on the score, but (Tuesday) it was a lot of effort and bringing that fight, it’s not easy. That’s what I’ve been craving all season.” 

He said the key takeaway for the Warriors is to stay focused throughout the entirety of a game and to take initiative on corner kicks when the opportunity arises. 

“We cannot be afraid on corner kicks, I think that’s our weak spot,” said Lopez.  

The Knights and Warriors are nearing the end of the regular season, with both teams only having four games left to play to solidify their spot for the district tournament.  

Lopez said this game against the Knights will give the Warriors a confidence boost heading into these last few games of the season. Despite the loss, it showed how well the Warriors can compete with the other top teams in the league and where they still need to improve. 

“I feel like the team can do good, we’re going to play College Place and then next week we play Naches Valley and we think we can put up a fight,” said Erazo. 

For the Knights, Jensen said the main goal as they move into their final games of the season is figuring out how to continue to win games against teams that put up a strong defensive front. He said right now the team has set their focus on becoming as strong as possible by the time the postseason comes around. 

“I’m excited. I think we could really do something here,” said Webb. 

The Knights’ next game will be on the road today at 6 p.m., where they will face Zillah. The Warriors will head back home today to play against College Place at 6 p.m. 

BOX SCORE:  

ROYL: 0-1: 1
WAHL: 0-0: 0 

    Knights senior Taylor Webb maneuvers around Warriors sophomore Alexandra Rodriguez during the first half. Webb would go on to shoot the game winning goal at the end of the second half.
  

    Warriors junior Ashya Erazo prepares to kick the ball downfield during Tuesday’s game. Erazo said she is very proud of the effort that the team put up against the Knights and is confident in how they will perform in the final stretch of the regular season.
  

    Emerson Eilers, a junior with the Knights, carries the ball across the middle of the field during Tuesday’s matchup.
  

    Knights freshman Briseydi Pacheco and Warriors junior Morgan Harlow go head-to-head during Tuesday’s game. The Knights now sit in third and the Warriors sit in fourth in the SCAC.