By Kai Raymer (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
The streak lives on, and Kickapoo culture may be at an all-time high.
Kickapoo junior and co-captain Baylea Davis scored the golden goal in double overtime of Thursday night’s Class 4 District 5 Tournament title match.
Her penalty kick, in the 101st minute, gave Kickapoo a 3-2 win over Nixa and ended an exhausting night for both sides.
While Davis stood alone for the PK, her Kickapoo teammates had her back both literally and figuratively, she said.
“It’s unreal. I was up there by myself, but honestly every single person on the team contributed to that goal,” Davis said. “Ellie (Davidson) had to play that ball in. We all got to that point, and not just one person won that game. I give it up for my team honestly.”
The victory gives Kickapoo six straight district titles, by far the longest such streak among area programs.
“It’s insane,” Davis said. “It’s a credit to the coaching staff, the culture and being a Kickapoo Chief. We hold ourselves to a high standard. We’re going to fight to the very end.
“So many teams and players have come through and contributed to those six years.”
Kickapoo, which gave up a pair of one-goal leads during regulation play, ultimately answered the challenge of a young, resilient Nixa team.
“That’s all this group has done is win district championships,” said Kickapoo coach Phil Hodge. “They don’t know anything else. For them, there was no other answer.”
From Nixa’s perspective, the match should have continued without the penalty call.
Davis’ goal came after Nixa was called for a foul while trying to defend a pass in the box.
Nixa coach Evan Palmer said he checked the game film immediately following the match. The film shows, he said, no foul on the play.
“We don’t have any better referees than those guys, but the video showed something very different than what they called,” Palmer said. “We touched the ball first, the (opposing player) comes in and makes the hit without even touching the ball. It just makes me sick… You don’t call games like that.”
Palmer said Thursday night was the latest incident in a series of costly calls that have gone against Nixa soccer teams (boys and girls). Particularly, he said, in pivotal moments of district matches.
“We just have to work harder – and we’ve done that – because no one’s going to give Nixa anything,” Palmer said. “For whatever reason, we’re on the bad side of calls way too often. Our girls and our guys are going to be working their butts off this summer so games don’t come down to calls like this.
“I like those (referees), personally, and we need more referees. We need them to have this game. I just don’t know why it comes down to these calls.”
The controversial ending came in what was otherwise an epic championship battle.
Nixa twice fought back from one-goal deficits, including in the waning minutes.
Freshman Sam McClain’s header off a rebound in the 78th minute tied the match and forced overtime.
“We caught our breath and just tried to get through to the girls that we hadn’t lost,” Hodge said. “We still had possibly 30 more minutes to play.
CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS OF THE GAME
Nixa trailed 1-0 at halftime, but tied the match early in the second half on a sensational goal from freshman Shaelee Franck. She juked her defender and fired a left-footed shot inside the far post.
“I’m so proud of my girls. They played like champions,” Palmer said. “They know now what it takes. We came down from a couple of deficits and found a way.”
Kickapoo struck first when sophomore Faith Joe (16′) blasted a free kick home from about 30 yards out in the middle.
Scoring from set pieces is nothing new for the Lady Chiefs. Neither are highlight-worthy goals by Joe.
“If you came to one of our practices, you’d say, ‘What are you guys doing?’ That’s all we do, for hours upon end, is set pieces and situational play,” Hodge said. “In these games, that’s what they often come down to.
“Faith actually scored one of our prettiest goals of the season here, earlier, against a pretty strong south wind. We had some different ideas on what we wanted to do if we were a little bit farther out, but she was close enough tonight that we went ahead and called our set where she just shoots it. She had the green light.”
Along with the district title streak, Kickapoo extended its season winning streak to 13 straight matches.
Hodge said a team-first attitude has made all the difference this year.
“This group has been so special,” Hodge said. “The team chemistry they have, it’s truly a team. There’s not an ‘I’ person on the team. It took all of us tonight, because we don’t sub much.”
It certainly helps, too, that the Lady Chiefs have gotten an all-state worthy season from sophomore forward Ellie Davidson. In Kickapoo’s semifinal win on Tuesday, she set the program’s single-season record for goals (45).
Kickapoo has also received scoring support from the likes of Davis, Taylor Akers and Sophia Young, who all have around 10-to-12 goals, Hodge said.
Kickapoo (21-5-1 overall) gets a much-needed break before its next match. The Lady Chiefs are expected to host their Class 4 quarterfinal match on Saturday, May 27 against the District 6 winner (Grain Valley or Blue Springs South).
The extended time off gives the depth-challenged Lady Chiefs, who lost all-state midfielder Abby Bilbao to a season-ending knee injury in late April, a chance to recharge.
“If we had a team of 18 on the roster, I’d be ready to go on Monday,” Hodge said. “We need a break, definitely.”
Nixa finishes the season 13-9 overall. The Lady Eagles peaked at the right time, winning nine of ten matches before Thursday’s loss.
They did so with a predominantly young roster. Around 10 freshmen saw varsity playing time this season.
“They’ve learned the speed of play,” Palmer said. “They’re playing against bigger, better girls now. They’ve learned how to play at this level, and they’ve brought life to the team. Our seniors and juniors have blended in so well.”
Kickapoo 3, Nixa 2 (2OT)
Kickapoo 1 1 0 1 — 3
Nixa 0 2 0 0 — 2
First half
Kickapoo – Faith Joe (16’)
Second half
Nixa – Shaelee Franck (46’)
Kickapoo – Sophie Young (55’)
Nixa – Sam McClain (78’)
Second overtime
Kickapoo – Baylea Davis PK (101’)
