Maggie Frank breaks scoring record as Knights blank Omak

ROYAL CITY — The Royal Knights (14-2-1) are one step closer to the district final after earning their 11th shutout win, overcoming the Omak Pioneers 7-0 Wednesday in the first round of the District 5 1A Girls Soccer Tournament.  

"It went good," Head Coach Jens Jensen said. "It was a good game, and we did some good things. It wasn't mistake-free, but it never is. (We) scored some goals and had some fun, and the heat's turning up a little because it's that time of year, and we'll see who manages that the best." 

The Knights came into this game with the same approach as every other game this season, to go after their opponent. Their attack was efficient in the first half with four goals, while they held Omak scoreless going into halftime. Coming out of the break, it was more of the same as Royal built on their lead with three more scores to seal the 7-0 win at home.  

Leading the dominant performance was Maggie Frank, who scored four of Royal's goals, which was also enough to surpass the all-time single season goals record holder Nikki Schrom (32) with 33.  

"So now we just see if she can score some more as the rest of the season goes on, but yeah, she broke that record, so that's a big deal," Jensen said.  

Aiding Frank and the rest of the Knights to victory was Marilyn Deras with four assists. Both of their performances contributed to the team's three season goals: At least one player scoring over 20 goals in the season, at least 15 assists, 10 or more shutout wins and making the district finals. To this point, the Knights have checked three of four boxes, Jensen said.  

With the win, Royal keeps home field advantage as the second seed when they host the third-seeded Naches Valley on Saturday at noon. These two teams met in this round last year, that time in Naches where the Rangers came out victorious 3-0. Now they stand in the way of the Knights' fourth goal of reaching the finals, which plays a role in fueling the players' motivations on the field.  

"There's a desire, without a doubt," Jensen said. "We're chasing that third one, generally the girls are pretty focused and excited and having fun getting stuff done. Everybody is good at this point, that'll be a battle, and hopefully it's our opportunity. We went and played them in districts in this exact same game last year. We lost by multiple goals, so I think the hope now is to host this game and to bring them to us and see if we can do the same." 

The two teams have faced off twice already this season, each on the other's home pitch. The first game resulted in a tie, but they still played out penalty kicks which the Knights won 6-5. However, it was the Rangers that were victorious on Oct. 15 1-0, which sets this upcoming up to be a match between two of the top teams in the South Central Athletic Conference.  

Though the win over Omak felt great, the job isn't finished, Jensen noted.  

"Without being too cliche, it's one game at a time," he said. "Now we've got to go handle this next one, and this next one's going to be a battle. I feel like it's going to come down to who takes their chances. When we played them both times, we've had chances, and we just have not been able to put them on frame or beat the keeper, and that's really what's going to come down to is who takes their chances when they come."  

Jensen emphasized the importance of shutting down key players in the Rangers' lineup, including forward Emmaria Mendoza, and finding ways to get the ball past their goalkeeper.  

"If you can shut her down and try to make the rest of the team beat you, then take your chances when they come, we got a great shot," Jensen said. 

Royal also hopes to utilize home field advantage, as Jensen feels the team generally plays better when at home. Including their win on Wednesday, the Knights are unbeaten at home. No matter the field though, the coach continued to emphasize taking their chances as they come.  

"I would say advantage us," Jensen said. "(We) get to play at home and play on a surface that we're used to and we like. We've had a couple of games with them that we've definitely had chances to win, and probably should have taken those chances. And so you're like, 'Can you really have three games where you just have a real difficult time finding the net?' I don't know, we'll see." 

BOX SCORE: 

OMAK: 0-0: 0 

ROYL: 4-3: 7 

    Marilyn Deras (6) takes a shot on goal against Wapato earlier this season. Deras recorded four assists in the Royal Knights win over Omak on Wednesday.
  

    Sophia Villafana (3) pushes the ball upfield against Wapato earlier this season. The Knights are one game away from the district final but have to overcome Naches Valley first.