Mariners wash away Lady Hawks

DARRELL L. BREESE/ Frontiersman Reporter

HOUSTON - Things got pretty ugly, pretty quick Saturday during a Northern Lights Conference girls' soccer match between the visiting Homer Mariners and the Houston Hawks.

Not only did field conditions deteriorate as rain soaked both players and the field, but the defending conference champion Mariners added to the mess by scoring four goals in the first half en route to an 8-0 victory.

It could have been worse for Houston, if it were not for the play of freshman goalkeeper Kate Hoppe. Facing a relentless attack from Homer, Hoppe made seven dramatic saves in the fist five minutes of the game and seemed primed to keep the Mariners in check. The barrage of 16 first-half shots was more than Hoppe could divert as the Mariners got on the board thanks to a pair of goals from Kyenne McKinstry in the first 10 minutes of action.

Despite allowing eight goals, Hoppe managed to record 18 saves during the game.

"Kate was filling in for us today in net," Houston head coach Steve Cole said. "She was only supposed to play in goal for this game, but after today's performance I might have to re-think that.

"She was incredible today."

The Mariners feature a hardy cast of retunrers from last season's conference championship squad, Cole noted, when talking about the performance of his goalkeeper.

"The first half was kind of ugly," Cole said. "We just never got into the flow of the game. We just weren't ready to go. I did like some things I saw from the girls in the second half. We began to establish some ball control and even generated a few scoring chances."

The Mariners showed why they won the region title last season, during their trip to the Valley. Homer notched wins over Houston, Colony and Wasilla.

"Our girls are eager to live up to the high expectations of defending the region title," Homer head coach Wendy Todd said. "We definitely didn't play our best game today because of the soggy field, but we showed a lot of composure and experience."

Homer managed to control most of the action, but Houston did have a pair of good scoring chances, thanks to the foot of Mariah Smith.

"She had a pair of good looks in the second half," Cole said. "But her shots went right into the waiting arms of their goalie."

Saturday's game was the first of the season for the Hawks.