Look who’s back on top of 4A SPSL: Curtis girls soccer team buoyed by stifling defense

In recent years, Puyallup and Sumner have typically dominated the 4A South Puget Sound League in girls soccer.

The Vikings and Spartans are near the top of the table again this fall, but they find themselves looking up to another team atop the standings: Curtis. The Vikings are in first place, currently sporting a 7-0-2 record in league play and an 8-1-3 mark overall. Though Puyallup has an identical overall record, its loss to Curtis on Oct. 7 proves to be the crucial separation point.

Despite his team not being used to being at the top of the 4A SPSL (Curtis hasn’t won a league title since 2014), coach Frank Hankel believes his athletes have built a special kind of culture to prove why the Vikings are a team to be reckoned with not just in their league, but statewide.

“We have put a big emphasis on culture over the past couple of years. At the beginning of this year, we went up to Cispus leadership camp up in Randle, Washington,” Hankel said. “I think that’s huge. We are trying to make our culture our advantage. It helps to have talent as well; we have some players. Overall, the team is pretty solid. The girls are playing for each other. They are working hard for each other at practice and at games.”

Hankel’s efforts to get the athletes to buy into the culture has paid off. Curtis is particularly strong on defense. Through 12 games, the Vikings have conceded just eight goals.

At the heart of the defense are junior captain KV Miller and freshman Sophia Mayne. Miller brings experience and talent: She was named the 4A SPSL defensive player of the year in 2019. Mayne might be young, but she has found her footing with her teammates.

Mayne is the player Hankel goes to when he needs someone to go toe-to-toe with the other team’s best player, something she does gladly. She may not be the biggest player on the team, but she plays with a fearlessness that helps boost the defense.

“She’s an incredible player, she has an awesome attitude. [Mayne] is not a very big young lady, but we often have her mark up the opponent’s best player,” Hankel said. “She does it and is phenomenal. She is a great player and has a high understanding of the game.”

The defense has not given up more than two goals in any match. They play tough and they play hard. As much as it’s a team effort, Miller stands out as the leader of the back line. The trust factor with the other defensive players has grown exponentially.

“I feel like the biggest thing for me as a center-back is the cooperation I get with my back line,” Miller said. “It’s just working so fluently; I’ve never had a back line like that especially in high school. It is nice to have that, and it is probably what works best. And we definitely have tough girls… If we put our head down and go to work, then I can see the rest of the season going in our favor.”

Of course, the Vikings have a pretty solid offensive attack as well, scoring 26 goals in their season up to this point. And where they shine on offense is in the midfield.

One strong midfielder is sophomore Enya Niebergall. Last season, Niebergall earned a spot on the 4A SPSL first-team as a defender. She plays at a high level yet retains her quiet and composed nature on the field. Her consistency is one of her strongest attributes, and it helps free up her fellow Vikings on the sides.

One beneficiary is senior Katie Riggins, a second-team all 4A SPSL selection last year and the leading goal scorer for Curtis with eight so far on the season. Having seen most of the culture change that Hankel has spent years implementing, Riggins is ready for a senior year that has some magic in it.

“A lot of my goals have been upper corner goals, so I get the ball wide and take a long shot and they happen to rainbow in,” she said. “The feeling after [scoring a goal] is magical, it’s nothing that I can describe. I know that my first high school goal this season was on my birthday. So that was something that I am going to remember for the rest of my life.”

The path to the playoffs is laid in front of the Vikings. Even though the lead in the standings over Puyallup and Sumner is slim, there’s an air of confidence that they can hold on for the rest of the season.

That being said, Hankel wants his team to remember that there is still some season left. All the Vikings need to do is play their game and stay loose on the field.

“This league is a tough league. I think the 4A SPSL and the KingCo are probably the two toughest leagues when it comes to soccer,” Hankel said. “We keep telling the girls that it’s one game at a time. We got Sumner on Tuesday; they have a phenomenal program. We still have to play Puyallup at Sparks Stadium and that is a great program out there. We sit here in first, but we have four extremely tough games to go.”

If Curtis can survive what feels like a gauntlet in the remainder of their season in the 4A SPSL, it has a shot to move past the state quarterfinals for the first time since 1998.