Into the wind...
Lady Jackets brave the elements, beat Cushing in OT
KHS SOPHOMORE Kylee Rojas delivers a kick during a game earlier this season. Rojas had two penalty kick goals on Tuesday, the second of which gave the Lady Jackets a 2-1 sudden victory overtime win at Cushing in their district opener. [Photo by Chris Simo
CORRECTION – A photo with the KHS girls soccer story in the Wednesday, March 30, edition incorrectly identified the player as KHS goalkeeper Zoey Padilla. The photo above shows Padilla in action earlier this season at the OCS tournament. [Photo by Chris
Aniessa Edsall made the Kingfisher girls soccer team run during the offseason when the temperatures were in the 30s.
She made them practice even when the winds were howling well over 30 miles per hour.
Practicing and preparing in those brutal conditions – especially the latter – paid off Tuesday.
Playing during a wind advisory, the Lady Jackets got an overtime penalty kick goal from Kylee Rojas to defeat Cushing 2-1 on the road to open District 3A-2 play.
“I’ve not been very kind to them,” said Edsall, noting some of the practice conditions.
“But our preparation served us well for days like Tuesday. The conditions weren’t ideal, but the girls never complained. They just worked that much harder to win because they knew they could.”
Wind speeds made conditions tough. Gusts made them brutal.
Still, said Edsall, the Lady Jackets found ways to threaten.
“We fought to the very end and we gave ourselves more opportunities to score while going against the wind in the middle of a wind advisory,” Edsall said.
Still, the first half ended with the game scoreless.
Kingfisher broke through first early in the second half.
Ariana Rivera was fouled in the box, giving KHS a penalty kick.
Rojas stuck it in the top left corner for a 1-0 lead.
The hosts struck back at the 64-minute mark and also stepped on goalkeeper Zoey Padilla’s hand in the process.
The injury sent Padilla to the sideline and made way for Serenity Starr to fill in at goal.
She answered the call with two saves down the stretch.
Regulation ended with the game knotted up, setting up the 10-minute sudden victory overtime period.
With about two minutes to go, Maleonia Vogt was fouled in the box, which set up Rojas’ game winner.
The win was Kingfisher’s third straight overall as it improved to 3-3.
“Our girls are finding success and from that they’re gaining confidence that shows in the way they play,” Edsall said. “We’ve enjoyed getting our first district win, but now we’re looking to win the next one on Tuesday.”The Lady Jackets host Alva in a district game that begins at 5 p.m.
Cushing doesn’t field a boys soccer team.
The KHS boys will play Alva at approximately 7 p.m. Tuesday.
They played at Putnam City on Friday (after press time) and host Piedmont JV Monday evening.