On the Road Again - By Sean Thonney
As we come to the final weekend of September 2023, the RHS girl's soccer squad also found themselves playing the game that officially marks mid-season. Along with this marking, Richland girls soccer now has a record of 7-1 and a winning streak of four. Saturday, the Lady Bombers were ready to fight. The game against the distanced Walla Walla Blue Devils was not to be considered as one of their easier games of the season. In fact, Walla Walla put up quite the fight, but not quite enough to keep control of the lady Bombers. The final score of the game was 3-1, but the moments and events throughout the game should not be left out.
The game started off considerably even, with possession going back and forth between the two competitors. Pushing, shoving, sweating, all of the hard work coming from both teams. With eighteen minutes left in the first half, Kylee Kukes assisted Payton Anderson with a shot to the back of the Blue Devils' net, putting the Richland Bombers on top 1-0. This shot gave the Richland girls a much-needed boost of energy. Although there were no more scoring shots in the first half, the passing, possession, and overall intensity for Richland majorly increased.
During halftime, I was in a conversation with a Richland fan from the crowd named Heather. When asked to discuss the first half, she said "Every time we play a team with less talent it seems as though we play down to their level and when we play a team with great talent we play up to their level." It seems as if this is true because WaHi has a decent team but nothing like the Bombers' roster.
After halftime, the next 40 minutes was like a whole new level of soccer. Both teams gave it their all. About fourteen minutes into the second half, Kylee Kukes once again came in strong with her second, and last assist of the game giving Bella Bunnage the perfect opportunity to add to the away side of the scoreboard. This two-score lead gave the Richland fans a sense of peace, but the Blue Devils wouldn't give up that easily. Sixteen minutes later, Bridget Boyd for WaHi fired back and gave the Devils a goal of their own.
But with the score 2-1, Richland refused to end the game with an opponent scoring. The Bombers would add their final touch just moments before the final whistle. Richland was in attack, WaHi managed to get a hold of the ball for just a split second and attempted to clear the ball up the field, supposedly looking for a counterattack. However, senior mid-fielder Emily Rogers got in the middle of this pass and intercepted it. She then laid the ball off to Bella Arroyo who took a single touch to set her up for the farthest shot of the game, clearing the goalie's hands on the right-hand side of the goal. This score would end the game with the Lady Bombers winning 3-1.
Although scoring is the ultimate factor that decides who wins and who loses, there are some statistics that shouldn't be overlooked. Kylee and Emily had beautiful assists, there were several saved shots on the goal, defensive tackles, forward crosses, and midfielder control. Within all the skills that come along with each different position, Richland was able to work together and ultimately add to their winning streak.
After the game, I got the opportunity to talk with midfielder Korrine Hayes. I asked Hayes about the game and losing teammate Sara Bown to an unfortunate injury. Hayes responded saying “Overall, the game went pretty good, a few little mistakes led to some one versus one's in the back that caused a lot of opportunities for Richland. And I think not having Sara took a big offensive threat away.” Sara Bowen, who would be a has been out for a few months now due to a torn ACL that took place in Seattle playing soccer. However, the Bombers offense has seemed to shine this year, producing 30 goals in eight games. RHS will look to continue their winning streak to five as they play Kamiakin, a usually formidable opponent but looks to be struggling at 5-4 for the season. That game will be at 7:00 tomorrow night at Lampson Stadium.
