Hall ends Jackets’ historic soccer season

Kingfisher had to wait an extra day to play in its first ever soccer quarterfi nal. When the opportunity finally did arrive last Friday evening, the Jackets were eliminated from the Class 3A bracket with a 5-0 loss at Heritage Hall.

The loss wrapped up Kingfisher’s season with a 7-7 record. The Jackets’ playoff win against Christian Heritage last week was the first-ever in program history.

That win came on Monday. The Jackets were supposed to play the Chargers on Thursday.

With weather impending, the game was first moved to earlier in the evening. Then it was moved to Edmond Santa Fe High School. Then it was postponed until the next day.

“With all the time and location changes to the game, it was a bit difficult to get zoned in,” coach Isaac Waltman said. “All in all, we showed up and played a solid game.”

Kingfisher played Heritage Hall on April 11 and lost 8-0.

The Chargers were 9-1 entering the quarterfinal matchup and had given up just seven goals all season.

The Jackets were down just 2-0 at halftime.

“We knew it was going to be a tough game going in,” Waltman said. “We played a lot of defense and had a tough time transitioning to offense.”

The .500 finish to the season was just the second time it’s happened in the program’s history.

“In my opinion, this was an amazing season,” Waltman said. “There were times where we struggled and had to make changes and adjustments, but our boys handled everything really well and were able to respond when we needed it most.”

The Jackets won their final three district games to assure themselves of a playoff spot.

Waltman did it while relying heavily on a crop of sophomores and juniors.

“With the experience they got this year and the attitude of being a winning team, I really look forward to next year,” Waltman said.

“We made history with our playoff win this year and hope to make that the standard for our program moving forward.”