The visiting Kenai Central soccer team defeated Nikiski 13-0 on Friday in Peninsula Conference action.
The Kardinals moved to 3-1-1 in the league and 9-4-2 overall, while the Bulldogs dropped to 0-5 and 0-8.
Kenai head coach Shane Lopez celebrated his birthday by getting the victory. Lopez started with the Kardinals as an assistant in 2015 and is closing in on 200 games with the program, so he’s now celebrated many birthdays with his squad.
“It’s always fun to spend a birthday with these guys,” Lopez said. “This is a great team. I’ve been doing this a long time, and we always have great crews of people.”
The Bulldogs have both girls and boys players after the girls team was unable to field a team due to low numbers.
Lopez appreciated the way his team approached the game.
“They moved the ball, they passed the ball, they were talking, they were communicating,” Lopez said. “The young guys came in and were doing the same thing.
“Nobody was trying to dribble people and all that. The goals were good, team goals, often coming on three, four or five passes in a row.”
Sawyer Vann had a hat trick and two assists for the Kards, while Cole Langham had two goals and an assist, and Ryker Dykema and Tyler Jackman each had a goal and two assists.
Also, Eli Smith had a goal and an assist, Levi Strong had a pair of assists, Brett Goldsby, Lucas Swanson and Zane James had goals, and Reid Titus had an assist.
Lopez commended Langham for his leadership.
“Even on a brace, he was distributing the ball rather than trying to put in his hat trick,” Lopez said. “He was bringing the younger guys up with him.”
Lopez said Strong had a great game in the midfield, while Jackman got his name in the scorebook with gritty play around the goal.
Nikiski coach Horst Haunold wrote in a text message that Dylan Hall had some good saves. Haunold said Hall did make some mistakes in the first half, but it was a different story in the second half after Haunold pointed out those mistakes at halftime.
The coach also wrote that Frank Nasibog and Jayden Anderson were bright spots in the midfield, while Gavin Carmody also held his own.
Soldotna girls 1, Grace 1
Friday, the visiting Stars played to an even score for the second straight game.
The nonconference affair left SoHi at 7-4-2 overall.
With eight minutes left, Jillian Duncan, with help from Rowan Peck, scored to forge a tie for Soldotna.
Soldotna boys 3, Grace 2
The visiting Stars notched the nonconference victory Friday to move to 10-4-1 overall.
Soldotna came back from a 2-1 deficit in the second half to get the win, ultimately nudging ahead on a Lane Hillyer goal in stoppage time.
Trae Pitsch hit a free kick and the Grace goalie made the save, but Hillyer finished the rebound.
Hillyer also had tied the game in the 73rd minute when he nudged in a throw-in by Owen Buckbee.
SoHi took the lead in just the second minute of the game when Quinten Wolverton put in a cross from Johnny Wardas.
About 15 minutes into the second half, Grace equalized on a free kick that goalie Luke Hillyer saved into the crossbar. The Grizzlies were there for the rebound.
When Luke Hillyer came out to play a through ball and got bumped, Grace cleaned up the mistake for the lead.
“They packed the box on us,” Soldotna head coach Erik Dolphin wrote in a text message. “We had the ball for most of the game and had tons of shots, but they parked 10 guys in the 18.
“They did a good job to limit space for us to attack. They had a good defensive game plan and we struggled to adjust.”
Colony girls 5, Homer 0
The nonconference game was called seven minutes into the second half due to an injury to Homer goalie Christi Weisser. The visiting Mariners are 2-7-1 overall.
Homer head coach Mike Tozzo said Weisser took a foot to the head and an ambulance had to be called. By the time Weisser was removed from the field on a stretcher, there were six minutes left on the game clock. The game was not restarted.
Tozzo said he expects Weisser to be OK, but also said he expects she will be out for the rest of the season.
During the game, Tozzo said his team was playing well, but he said Colony had one really good player who scored all the goals.
Colony boys 6, Homer 0
The visiting Mariners fell to 4-5-1 after a nonconference loss to the Knights.
“Colony is the best team we have played all year,” wrote Homer head coach Tyler Jeffres in a text message of the Knights, one of the top teams in Division I.
Jeffres added that the Mariners, a Division II team, played well, but the pace of passing by Colony’s midfield was hard to track.
Jeffres said Kai Waltenbaugh had a good game in the midfield.
Nikiski’s Jayden Anderson and Kenai Central’s Diego Huerta battle for the ball Friday, May 16, 2025, at Nikiski Middle-High School in Nikiski, Alaska. (Photo by Jeff Helminiak/Peninsula Clarion)
Kenai Central’s Lucas Swanson shields the ball from Nikiski’s Shane Hall on Friday, May 16, 2025, at Nikiski Middle-High School in Nikiski, Alaska. (Photo by Jeff Helminiak/Peninsula Clarion)
Kenai Central’s Sawyer Vann shields the ball from Nikiski’s Frank Nasibog on Friday, May 16, 2025, at Nikiski Middle-High School in Nikiski, Alaska. (Photo by Jeff Helminiak/Peninsula Clarion)
