GAME RECAP: West 9-0 Karns
In the Onrise Care High School Game of the Week, the Rebels earn a spot in the District 3 final against Oak Ridge final downing the Beavers at home.
In front of a home crowd, the West Rebels (17-1-1) punched their ticket to the AAA-District 3 championship with a heavy 9-0 victory over the Karns Beavers (3-13-2).
The Rebels opened with control, applying intense pressure to Karns’ back line. Junior forward Tobias Hageltorn led the charge early, while junior midfielder Daniel Drata offered crucial support.
Despite their smaller size, Karns’ defenders and midfielders—seniors Kevin Gonzalez and Matthew Knights in particular—fought well around the box to keep the attack largely away from goal.
Early on, Rebel attackers quickly found themselves swallowed by defenders. Drive after drive ended with the ball out of bounds. But they regrouped at midfield and worked back toward the goal.
Once the dam was broken, goals came quickly for the home team. In the 23rd minute, senior forward Jackson Novinger scored off a pass from Hageltorn. The Rebels added a second a minute later as they worked downfield from the restart. Novinger drove a free kick from 37 yards over the wall, where senior defender William Brush headed in.
In the 30th minute, freshman midfielder Grayson Huffaker received a short pass from Novinger, settled, and drove the ball home from 10 yards out.
Senior Fry Martin guided the Beavers in the midfield as the visitors attempted to stop the bleeding. Sophomore Kevo Mireku showed off impressive footwork in the midfield as well.
By the end of the first half, West had recorded nine shots on goal. To start the second, senior Ayaz Sultan replaced sophomore Azrael Philips in the goal for the Rebels. Sultan had not played since breaking his leg in the team’s first preseason match.
The second half started slowly again for West. Karns came at them with energy despite their lack of reinforcements (the Beavers only had four substitutes on their bench). But in the 56th minute, Novinger scored again, set up by senior midfielder Fletcher Freeman.
Novinger earned his hat trick in the 62nd minute from a deflected penalty kick. Hageltorn took the shot, and the keeper dove left to block the ball. Novinger rushed in as it rolled out and booted the ball into the right corner of the net.
By this point, West had settled into its preferred style of play. The Rebels favor quick movement. West has few large players, so they avoid playing a strong, forceful style. Instead, they favor finesse, passing the ball constantly and moving it away from coverage to work around the defense.
West’s offense surged in the final minutes, scoring four more goals as the Beaver defenders grew weary. Brush scored from a header in the 71st minute off a corner kick by senior forward Alden Wilson. Sophomore midfielder William Harriman scored from the penalty spot three minutes later. Then Brush collected his own hat trick in the 77th minute. Twenty yards out on the right side of the pitch, he halted his run to fake a heavy kick and lose the defender behind him, then steadied and delivered the ball to the back of the net.
In the final seconds, senior midfielder Dieudonne Kato made it 9-0. From 40 yards out, he smashed a kick to the left. The keeper jumped toward the post, but the ball slipped past him as time expired.
This victory guarantees West a spot in the regional semifinals on May 16. Their opponent will be based on the results of the AAA District 3 and District 4 finals on May 12. West hosts Oak Ridge for District 3, and Bearden hosts Hardin Valley for District 4. The winner of each district plays the runner-up from the other.
The High School Game of the Week is brought to you by Onrise Care:
Onrise Care takes a team-based approach to delivering high-quality, compassionate mental health and athlete player care. Learn more at onrisecare.com or call 865-288-8970 to learn about their tele-psychiatry and other services."
West Head Coach Nicholas Kim
On his team’s performance:
“We won 9-0. The result was nice. But I was disappointed in the amount of play. Give all the credit to Karns, they did a great job. They stepped up and made it very hard on us. It got our best players frustrated, and it worked for a little while. But eventually quality is going to come through. I’m proud of what we did. It wasn’t a lack of effort. I’m just disappointed in the amount of disagreements that we’re having within ourselves. Moving forward, we won’t change anything. We do what we do and let the other team adjust.”
West Senior Forward Jackson Novinger
On the mindset for the district championship:
“We know how good we are, but I don’t have to say it. We’ll show it against Oak Ridge. We’re going to take it to them. It’s at our field. I think we have the advantages. Our field will let us get it wide and take it out to our wings. I don’t think they’ll be able to hang with us. They’re a very good team, but I think we’ve got it. We’re not happy with second place.”
Karns Head Coach Steven Gallaher
On his team’s performance:
“The guys played their hardest, and I was really impressed.”