Prep girls soccer: Mariners bounce Knights from tourney

May 27, 2007

By Jeremiah Bartz/ Frontiersman

WASILLA - The Colony Knights fell victim to the Homer Mariners and the single-elimination Northern Lights Conference tournament Friday morning.

Homer senior Claire Siekaniec converted a penalty kick in the 21st minute to lead the Mariners to a 1-0 win over the Knights at Bumpus Ballfields in the NLC quarterfinals.

On Saturday, Homer would claim its third NLC title in four years. But Friday's game meant the end of the season for Colony.

&#8220It's really tough, disappointing,” Colony head coach Lorie Miner said.

After scoring three key NLC wins in their final four conference games, Miner said she was pretty confident the Knights would be able to make it through the region meet and get a berth in the state tournament.

Colony and Homer played to a scoreless tie early in the season, and Miner said the Knights new they were paired with a very tough opponent in the first round.

Although Miner didn't want to see her team's season end Friday morning, she said she was very pleased with the progress that a young Colony team made this season.

The Knights will graduate only four seniors, and will return a solid nucleus of young talent.

Among those who will return are strikers Kara Larson and Tara Murray, who finished the season in a tie with a team-high six goals.

Goalkeeper Katelyn Payne is another young player who proved to be a key contributor for the Knights. The freshman allowed only three goals in her final six games of the season.

Contact Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.