The Elma Eagles stared their quest for a possible soccer district title and state-playoff berth with a 3-1 victory over King’s Way Christian in the first round of the 1A District 4 Tournament on Tuesday in Elma.

The 10th-ranked Eagles (14-3) pressured No. 18 KWC (9-6) early on, but failed to score through the first 20 minutes as the Knights held back Elma’s preferred attacks.

Elma likes to utilize its speed up front to earn goal-scoring opportunities, usually via a sideline run that leads to a dangerous cross or through passes behind the opposing defenses that allow speedy sophomore forwards Beta Valentine and Miley Seaberg 1-on-1 chances with the keeper.

The KWC coaching staff did its homework as the Knights defense pushed any Elma through passes safely back to keeper Aubrey Armstrong and pinched Elma wingers Valerie Echeverria, Aaleigha Weld and Macy Adams with multiple defenders, cutting off any potential crossing attempts.

The Eagles changed tactics by moving the ball through the midfield and up to Valentine and Seaberg. The Eagles super sophomores did the rest.

In the 22nd minute, Valentine got the ball at midfield and made a determined run into the Knights defensive third, battling through three KWC defenders while retaining possession.

Valentine then let rip a hard shot from inside the 18-yard box that was blocked by a diving Armstrong.

Seaberg wisely trailed the play and found the rebound at her feet in front of an open net, placing the ball across the goal line for a 1-0 lead.

Seaberg returned the favor in the 33rd minute, making a run down the hash to draw in the defense then sending a cross to Valentine, who maneuvered past her defender and slotted the ball inside the near post for a 2-0 lead.

RYAN SPARKS / THE DAILY WORLD Elma’s Miley Seaberg (9) and Iveth Torres, left, pressure a clearance by King’s Way Christian defender Grace Mayhugh during the Eagles’ 3-1 victory in the first round of the 1A District 4 Tournament on Tuesday, Nov. 1, at Davis Field in Elma.

“Normally, we practice through balls over their defensive line, but I think seeing it in the game, (the hustling runs through the middle) just kind of naturally happened,” Valentine said.

The Eagles comfortable two-goal lead at the half didn’t last long as the Knights got a goal from two of its young up-and-comers.

KWC eighth-grader Jasmine Carney found room down the near sideline and sent a cross in toward fellow eighth-grader Shaylie Haij, who got the ball past Elma keeper Emmie Spencer to cut the Eagles lead to 2-1 less than four minutes into the second half.

The game stayed 2-1 for the majority of the half, with KWC applying pressure to the Eagles defense — led by solid team play from Elma midfielders Grace Spencer and 1A Evergreen League Defensive Player of the Year Eliza Sibbett — Elma held the lead.

“When we got scored on, I just told the team we have to keep our heads up — which we do a pretty good job of anyway — and play as a team,” Sibbett said. “We had to play for each other because that could have potentially been our last game.”

“Nothing really changed. We just needed to hold tight and not concede another goal,” Elma head coach Evan Valentine said. “I knew if we played our game our way — just a solid, good game — that we would win and that’s what we did.”

In the 67th minute, Emmie Spencer preserved Elma’s lead, coming off her line to make a save then pouncing on the loose rebound to thwart the Knights’ best scoring chance of the second half.

With five minutes left, Elma’s hard work paid off when Valentine took a cross and got around Armstrong. Valentine ripped a shot toward the near post and the ball was knocked away via a hand ball by a Knights defender, putting the Knights down to 10 players with the subsequent red card and earning Elma a penalty kick.

“I had a feeling the keeper was going to come out, so I was just trying to be there and be ready to score,” Beta Valentine said of the play. “I tried and we got a penalty kick out of it, so I guess it worked.”

On the penalty kick, Seaberg strode to the ball and hit a shot that deflected off the near post and in, giving Elma a much-needed insurance goal and all but securing the victory.

“I don’t really like to dwell on it and think about it too much,” Seaberg said of the penalty shot, one in which she wasted little time at getting to. “I like to put it down, (the whistle) blows and then I go.”

The goal set off a roar from a relieved Eagles crowd and elicited smiles from the typically focus-faced Elma players.

“I got nervous because it hit the post a little bit,” Seaberg said. “But when I saw it went in I was really excited because I knew we locked it in then.”

“I was so happy and so proud of Miley because I really wanted us to get another goal in to solidify our lead,” Beta Valentine said.

“Our reaction was just, ‘Yes, we got another goal,’” Sibbett said. “It’s good to have that insurance.”

With the victory, Elma keeps its season alive and moves on to face defending district champion La Center (15-0-1) at 6 p.m. Thursday at La Center High School.

“They’re good, they’re fast and they have good players,” Sibbett said of the Wildcats. “But if we play our game I think we got it.”

“I expect another really good game,” coach Valentine said, noting the Wildcats beat the Eagles 3-2 in the district semifinals a year ago. “They beat us in overtime in the district tournament last season, and we’re better than we were last year. … I know that if we play well, we can beat anybody in this district.”