Colony boys top Valley rival for title

KENAI — If the Colony Knights were going to capture their first conference title since 2010, longtime head coach Jeremy Johnson knew he’d have to go through Wasilla to get it.

And that’s exactly what the Knights did.

Colony used three second-half goals to score a 3-0 win over the Warriors during the boys’ title match of the Northern Lights Conference Championships at the Kenai Soccer Complex Saturday.

“Absolutely, 100 percent I knew we’d be looking at Wasilla,” Johnson said by cellphone from Kenai Saturday evening.

Nick Blohm, Jake Spannagel and Kyle Bolam each scored early in the second half to lead the Knights to their first NLC crown since 2010 and 10th since 1998. The 3-0 win also stopped Wasilla’s bid for its third straight region championship.

Johnson said it was a tough first 40 minutes for the Knights, who entered the intermission facing a scoreless tie after playing into heavy winds during the first half.

But much like Colony did during its 4-0 semifinal win over Homer, the Knights were able to start strong in the second after a sluggish first half.

Colony struck first in the 42nd minute, recording the first of its three goals during an 18-minute span. Blohm won a battle during a scramble in front of the Wasilla net and scored a goal, which was set up by a Ben Atkinson cross.

About 10 minutes later, Spannagel caught up to a ball on the run and made a move to tuck the ball inside the crossbar.

During the 58th minute, Spannagel sent a ball up the middle and Bolam was able to push the ball into the net. Johnson said it was nice to see is team respond positively in the second half once again.

“We’ve been down that road before. We talked about a few adjustments (during halftime) based on what we saw,” Johnson said.

Johnson said credit is also due to Wasilla.

“They’re a hard-working team, the two-time defending champs,” Johnson said.