With a second-straight undefeated KingCo 3A/2A season, second-straight league championship and second-straight state berth, things couldn’t be much better for the Liberty girls soccer team.
“I feel like the drive the girls have had this year and last year is completely on a different level,” said senior all-state forward and Oklahoma commit Cassidy Nangle. “Every girl here wants to win. You can just feel the energy.”
But as the Patriots (15-1) prepared for their opening-round state game against Columbia River tonight, they had to be careful.
The Patriots looked nearly as good last season before heading into trouble in the state tournament. Liberty fell to Bonney Lake 2-1 in the first round. But there was no shame in that. Bonney Lake went all the way to the 3A title game before falling to Seattle Prep 1-0. Liberty coach Jamie Giger said the team’s playoff seeding may have played a role.
By winning the KingCo, Liberty advanced straight to the state tournament, bypassing the district playoffs, and taking more than a week off.
“That week of kind of killed them,” Giger said. “They kind of lost their itch I guess you could say.”
Giger is in her first season coaching the Patriots, but she was close to the situation last year as friend Malia Arrant was at the helm.
This season, the Patriots have looked great from start to finish. Their only loss came in a non-league opener against Skyline, 1-0. And the Spartans are no ordinary foe. Skyline has won the 4A state title two out of the past three seasons, and it took third in the other season.
“It was a reality check,” Nangle said. “I felt like everyone was so shocked, they didn’t really think we could do it until we played Skyline and kept up with them. It was inspiring for us to see we’re up at that level.”
From that game on, Liberty was perfect through the regular season, going 14-0 and outscoring opponents 60-8 and only once allowing an opposing team to score more than one goal in a game.
“Our goal at the beginning was to get better every game, and we did that,” Giger said. “There were a couple of speed bumps along the way, but they kept working hard.”
Regardless of what happened Wednesday night, it’s obvious the team is working through a historic run.
“To go undefeated twice in a row means that we’re consistent and always working hard,” said senior all-state midfielder and San Diego commit Kimi Fry. “It shows we didn’t just get lucky last year.”
If the Patriots win against Columbia River, they will face the winner of Everett and Decatur in the next round of the 3A state tournament Saturday.
