HS Girls Soccer: Timberline Survives in PKs, Enumclaw Keeps Season Alive

11/6/25

(Tacoma, WA) A double-header at George Nordi Field in Tacoma was pelted by rain and wind but four teams would have to battle those environments to keep their season alive. In what breaks down to a four-team mini-tournament for one spot in the state tournament, the Bellarmine Lions would battle PSL foes the Timberline Blazers with the winner taking on the winner of the Kentlake Falcons vs. Enumclaw Hornets match to follow. With two teams going home after Thursday night, everyone had their backs up against the wall looking to avoid moving on to winter sports.

Timberline 1, Bellarmine 0 (3-2 PKs)

First up in the double header was a Puget Sound League battle as the Bellarmine Lions and Timberline Blazers met for the first time this season. Timberline came in as the #6 seed in the district tournament while Bellarmine was the #8 seed and had played on each match day in the tournament. Bellarmine won their first match over Decatur 2-0 before falling in the quarterfinals to Gig Harbor 3-0. Timberline opened up the tournament with a 1-0 loss to Thomas Jefferson and would hope to avoid a quick elimination.

Timberline was on the front foot early in the match and put some pressure on the backline of Bellarmine. The Blazers couldn’t get too many shots off as the defense of Naomi Bland, Stella Mores, Chelsea Larson, and Hudson Hedrick held the 18-yard box strong and forced the Blazers to take long range opportunities against Charlotte Lamb to get any shots off. Timberline would take three of the first four shots of the match in a defensively sound half. Bellarmine got things going late in the half as they began to pressure the Blazers a bit. Timberline’s backline of Melia Mareko, Paityn Gagnon, Saylor Carrougher, and Anna Bauersfeld held strong and kept the pressure off of Addi Lawrence in goal to send the scoreless match to halftime.

The rain and wind really picked up later in the first half and carried over into the second as well. Players kept wiping their eyes as rain pelted them bit with the teams changing sides, it was Bellarmine as the aggressors. Mealani Salema and Lexi Piacitelli led the charge on the offensive end for the Lions with Emry Parker and Grace Lepkowski earning looks as well. The best look of the match came in the 62nd minute for Bellarmine, but a fantastic save by Addi Lawrence kept the match scoreless. Bellarmine only allowed one Timberline shot in the 2nd half but couldn’t get any of their looks to go and the match was headed to overtime.

Very early in the OT period, it looked like the match had come to an end. A cross into the 6-yard box turned into chaos as Timberline tried to clear it while Bellarmine tried to grab the game-winner. The ball ended up going into the back of the net off of Mealani Salema and the Lions began to celebrate. However, the officials got together and waved off the goal on a foul call to keep the match alive at 0-0. Neither side could piece anything together after the chaos and 90 minutes still wasn’t enough and we were headed to a penalty kick shootout.

After the first round of PKs, Bellarmine led 1-0 but Timberline evened back up at 1-1 through two rounds. Both teams hit their third shots and it was 2-2 going into the fourth. That is when things changed as the Blazers hit their shot while Addi Lawrence denied the Lions look. That put all the pressure on Bellarmine as they trailed 3-2 going into the final round. Bellarmine keeper Charlotte Lamb would hit the bottom of the crossbar but as the ball ricocheted down, it did not cross the line. The officials agreed it was no goal and Timberline celebrated their 3-2 PK win to keep their season alive over Bellarmine.

Our Sumner Holiday Inn Express MVP of the match went to Timberline goalie Addi Lawrence. The senior keeper only allowed two goals in the shootout but also had an epic save in the 62nd minute to keep the match scoreless. Without that save this one never would have gone to OT and Timberline’s season would be over. However the senior had a terrific performance to keep the Blazers state hopes alive.

Timberline’s win moves them to 11-3-4 and the Blazers advance to Saturday where they will have a winner-to-state, loser-out match at 10am against Enumclaw at Mount Tahoma HS. Bellarmine’s season comes to an end as the Lions finish with a record of 9-7-3.

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Highlights

Full Penalty Kick Shootout

Enumclaw 2, Kentlake 1

In the nightcap, it was a North Puget Sound League showdown but the Kentlake Falcons and Enumclaw Hornets were meeting for the third time this season. The teams played to a 1-1 draw at the very beginning of the season while Enumclaw won the rematch in October, 7-2. Kentlake would look to make the third time the charm while the Hornets hoped to replicate the results from the second meeting.

Just like in the first match, the team attacking towards the scoreboard side was the team to control possession. In the first half it would be Kentlake as the Falcons utilized their quickness to harass the defense of Enumclaw. Lauren Tripp, Shannon Mclain, Camille Rigtrup, and Leah Kelly led the charge but the last two defenders for Enumclaw in Braidyn Brebner and Madison Holden kept pressure off of Kami Bullock.

In the 12th minute, a pass would get deflected to the middle of the field where Sutton Kelsey was waiting for it. She would settle the ball and fire a shot from 34 yards out that would get over the Kentlake goalie for the first goal of the match. Enumclaw’s 1-0 lead would not last for long however. About a minute later, Lauren Tripp got almost the exact same look in the 13th minute from 38 yards out that just got over the Hornet keepers fingertips. The dueling goals would even the match up and we would stay at 1-1 moving into halftime.

Both goalies in Grace Engebo for Kentlake and Kami Bullock for Enumclaw had some pressure on them consistently throughout the match but neither were going to make it easy for their opponents. As Lauren Tripp and Shannon Mclain tried to earn some breakthroughs for the Falcons, the Hornet midfield of Clare Largen and Lexi DeVol stood strong and ramped up their aggression to control the middle of the field. Largent would have a big role in deciding this one as she threaded a pass through the 18 where Sutton Kelsey redirected it into the back of the net. In the 46th minute, Enumclaw was back in front, 2-1.

Kentlake had to start taking some risks as they tried to find an equalizer with time running low. Elizabeth Tenichenko got much more aggressive in the midfield as well and was a nice transition player for the Falcons to move the ball from defense to offense. The Hornets were just way too strong in terms of possessing the ball for long periods of time and not allow Kentlake to push the ball into their attacking third. Camryn Puryer played a big part in that as they kept the ball away from Emma Haugeb’s side of the field as she was a defensive wizard for the Falcons. Enumclaw’s possession game was too strong and they would cruise to the end of the match to defeat Kentlake 2-1.

Our Sumner Holiday Inn Express MVP of the match went to Enumclaw’s Sutton Kelsey. The senior paced the offensive attack with great field vision and passing skills. She also notched a brace with both Enumclaw goals but more impressive was her sportsmanship. Kelsey was sure to check on every injured player for both teams throughout the match while helping up opponents and teammates alike. Her performance on the field and her humility were both an A+ which made this a no-brainer decision.

With the win, Enumclaw moves to 14-3-2 on the season and will meet Timberline on Saturday at 10am at Mount Tahoma HS for a spot in the state tournament. Kentlake finishes their season 8-6-4 and a solid run in the District Tournament.

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