Last Friday’s girls soccer contest between Whitehall and Northampton seemed destined to go into overtime and PKs just like their district playoff game did last year. However, the K-Kids earned a free kick with 10:33 left in the contest and Raine Korpics made it count by launching a kick from 35 yards out into the far top corner of the net delivering Northampton a 1-0 win.

Whitehall head coach Chris Bleam commented after the game, “Raine’s a special player and she hit a great shot. Had we gotten a break it could have gone the other way. Today I thought we played really well and Northampton played really well and I’m proud of our team’s effort.”

Both teams had quality scoring chances during the game but were kept off the board by strong play from the goalkeepers.

Of his keeper, Kaleigh Fisher, Bleam said, “She had a fantastic game overall. Probably her most complete game. I thought both goalkeepers were fantastic. All the kids were great. They played hard. That’s the way high school athletics is supposed to be.”

Northampton head coach Michael Missmer had similar praise for his goalie, Olivia Vajda.

“Our goalkeeper in my opinion kept us in the game the first half,” he said. “Liv Vajda did a great job. Sometimes she doesn’t get enough recognition for how much we appreciate her.”

Korpics, who had the winning goal in back-to-back 1-0 games, gave her thoughts on the competition.

“The game got a little physical,” she said, “more physical than we expected. But we were both out to win. Any high-level game gets a little physical. I’m just glad we could get the win in the end.”

The free kick goal was her third in less than a week giving her a share (as of this writing) of the EPC goal-scoring lead with 16.

The loss dealt a serious blow to the Zephyrs postseason aspirations. At 4-8 they will basically need to sweep their final five contests to earn a district berth. It will be a huge challenge with their next three opponents being Emmaus, Central, and Parkland.

The K-Kids are on the cusp of qualifying for districts at 7-6 on the season. Given the difficulty of their upcoming schedule the rematch at Whitehall on Oct. 13 will be a key factor in determining their postseason status.