Platte County sophomore defender Emily Fadler challenges for a ball against St. Pius X.
The Platte County girls soccer team was no match for No. 3 state-ranked St. Pius X, which defeated the Pirates to win a second consecutive Class 3 District 8 title on May 20 at Kearney High School.
In a rematch of last year’s district championship, which St. Pius X won with the game’s only goal in the final seven minutes, the Warriors overwhelmed the Pirates to rise victorious 5-0 behind a pair of first-half goals and three more in the second half.
“We were a little slow to come out in the beginning,” Platte County head coach Ashlyn Brantley said. “We were sitting back too much, which caused problems in the back, and they (Pius) finished the chances they created. Can’t be mad about that.”
It took just 104 seconds for senior midfielder Kate Sell to give the Warriors a 1-0 lead with a right-footed effort. Pius struck again 13 minutes later, when sophomore forward Ila Abella brought speed off the bench to double the advantage for Pius, racing past a pair of defenders before applying the finish.
“I think we did a good job staying in the game and keeping our heads up after that first goal,” Brantley said. “We don’t ever want (to concede) an early goal, but you’re still in the game at that point. No reason to get scared or change the game plan too much. We’ve got to deny those early chances.”
The Pirates struggled to retain possession and create offensively, but they kept themselves alive trailing 2-0 at halftime. Another early goal in the second half for the Warriors killed off any hope the Pirates had of coming back to complete the upset.
Pius added a third from senior midfielder Grayson Vacanti, the game-winning scorer of last year’s district final, at 3:15 into the second half with a left-footed strike from distance. Abella scored another after driving through some contact in the box before applying a left-footed finish with under 30 minutes left.
Freshman goalkeeper Kylie Hill makes a first-half save in Platte County’s district final defeat to St. Pius X on May 20 in Kearney.
Platte County freshman goalkeeper Kylie Hill came up with an impressive save down to her right with 15 minutes to play, but Pius pounced on the rebound before junior midfielder Annie Broadrick eventually scored to make it 5-0. The Pirates’ offense continued to struggle on the offensive end, getting shut out for the third time this season.
The Warriors, now 21-2, advance to the Class 3 quarterfinals with a third 20-win season in four years. They have won 16 straight games, with their only two defeats coming via penalty kick shootouts.
Platte County’s defeat concluded a season in which the Pirates made substantial progress, using a young roster this season to reach back-to-back district finals for the first time since 2022.
“At the beginning of the season, it would have been questionable,” Brantley said about making it back to a district championship. “As we progressed through the season, no doubt.”
After opening the season with three consecutive defeats and an early exit in the Platte County Invitational, the Pirates quickly found their footing as they won eight of their next nine matches.
They finished as runners-up in the North Kansas City Invitational before winning six of their final seven matches to end the regular season.
“These girls have come a long way,” Brantley said. “This is a completely different team as far as what we’ve done on the field from our first tournament to now. There has been a lot of growth and maturity on the field. That’s only going to get better, especially being such a young team as we go forward.”
Platte County opened postseason play as the No. 3 seed on May 16 with a 5-0 quarterfinal thumping of No. 6-seeded William Chrisman, featuring a brace from sophomore forward Addison Stone after Katelyn Newberry broke the deadlock, with Amela Dzilic also adding a goal in the second half.
Stone scored the two most critical goals of her career against No. 2-seeded Kearney on May 18, which included the golden goal in overtime to send the Pirates back to the district finals.
Stone had originally put Platte County ahead 1-0 with a first-half strike, but with 6:31 left in regulation, Kearney finally canceled it out with an equalizer from a through ball down the right side to force overtime.
Platte County’s leading scorer stepped up once again in overtime, pouncing on a loose ball in the box. After a recycled corner kick was collected by Addison Linn, who had her shot saved, the rebound spilled out for Stone to fire a left-footed effort in for the game-winning goal.
The Pirates graduated six seniors this season, but have the opportunity to return nine of the 11 players who started in the district championship.