{"id":137192,"date":"2026-01-30T04:01:11","date_gmt":"2026-01-30T04:01:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/137192\/"},"modified":"2026-01-30T04:01:11","modified_gmt":"2026-01-30T04:01:11","slug":"red-knights-girls-capture-district-crown","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/137192\/","title":{"rendered":"Red Knights girls capture District Crown"},"content":{"rendered":"


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A match-up that has spanned a half-decade once again played out Tuesday night in Cape Coral.<\/p>\n

This time, it was the North Fort Myers girls soccer team that captured the FHSAA District 5A-11 Championship in a rivalry game over Mariner. <\/p>\n

The Red Knights (14-3-2) came out with a 4-3 victory in a back-and-forth affair, with the winning goal coming in the last 10 minutes of the match. <\/p>\n

\u201cI thought we had a good game plan,\u201d said North head coach Nick Erickson, noting they were down four key players due to injury\/illness. \u201cThey were just bought-in. The cold weather helped \u2014 allowed us to not have to substitute as much as we normally do. And we can score goals. If there\u2019s one thing we can do, it\u2019s score goals. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe effort was just absolutely fantastic. You couldn\u2019t be more happy or proud about that. I don\u2019t think they gave us a puncher\u2019s chance with the sickness and in injury. But for these guys to do what they\u2019ve done is pretty impressive.\u201d<\/p>\n

Four out of the last five years the Red Knights have captured a district title over Mariner in the finals, but had lost to the Tritons (15-2-2) earlier this season in another one-goal contest. <\/p>\n

Of the win over a top-ranked team in the class which they are likely to see again in the state tournament, Erickson said, \u201cI think you\u2019d rather be one-to-one going into that matchup than two-zero, just from a psychological standpoint. It\u2019s going to be a battle if we\u2019re both able to get there, but there\u2019s no guarantee for anybody. For this effort, I think a lot of kids grew up tonight. I think a lot of kids realize if they can go toe-to-toe with the number one team in the region, then why shouldn\u2019t they be able to do that against anybody else?\u201d<\/p>\n

Scoring on a brisk night at Tony McKenna Stadium got off to a fast start, as the Red Knights scored in the second minute as Angelina Toro cleaned up a rebound off the hands of the Triton keeper and slotted it home with her left boot. <\/p>\n

Mariner found the equalizer in minute 15 as a Madison Arch centering pass from the corner was tapped home by Kelsi Longabardi. <\/p>\n

In the 29th minute, North was called for a hand ball in the box, giving the Tritons a penalty shot. Mariner\u2019s Kamila Pena had no issues finishing her chance, giving her team a 2-1 advantage late in the first half. <\/p>\n

The Red Knights were quick to answer, as just two minutes later Bailey Root headed the ball into the back of the net off a beauty of a corner kick. <\/p>\n

North keeper Hope Cordeiro came up with some massive saves for the Red Knights in the first half, where the came could have become out of reach early. <\/p>\n

\u201cShe played great tonight,\u201d Erickson said. \u201cThat girl had been waiting two years waiting for this opportunity. She\u2019s had some ups and downs, but as I told her coming off the field, she\u2019s a district champion goalkeeper now, and nobody can take that away from her. She\u2019s a leader and was named a captain when Kinsley (Seidl) went down, and deservedly so. I\u2019m really happy for her.\u201d<\/p>\n

Coming out of a 2-2 tie at the half, it wasn\u2019t until minute 55 where North regained its advantage. <\/p>\n

It was a sister-to-sister connection, for the first time this season, as Eliana found Angelina Toro for her second goal of the night. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve been waiting on that,\u201d Erickson said. \u201cFor her to come up like that, it\u2019s huge.\u201d<\/p>\n

Minute 71 brought some controversy, as a flip throw-in from Longabardi sailed into a crowd in front of the net and touched back twine. The ball must be touched by any player, as a throw-in cannot be untouched and go into the net. <\/p>\n

After a referee conference, they determined the ball was in fact touched, which allowed the goal to count. <\/p>\n

A heated North Fort Myers squad, which felt the ball was untouched and the goal should not be allowed, responded in a massive way. <\/p>\n

Mere minutes later, junior Kennel Dominguez struck the shot of the match, drilling the ball from more than 20 yards out and putting her team back up 4-3 with just 7 minutes remaining. <\/p>\n

\u201cA superstar was flat out born tonight,\u201d Erickson said of Dominguez. \u201cWhenever she realizes it, good luck. She\u2019s so explosive.\u201d<\/p>\n

Minutes later, the final whistle sounded, sending North into an excited frenzy, while the Tritons felt heartbreak. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s unfortunate,\u201d said Mariner head coach Jami Hagy of the result. \u201cWe had to finish our chances, and we didn\u2019t. We had some in the first half, didn\u2019t finish, and that\u2019s the close game, that\u2019s what happens.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe played hard. It\u2019s always such a high-emotion game. Whoever wants it more usually wins, and that\u2019s what happened tonight. We had glimpses of good things we were doing, we just needed a little bit more.\u201d<\/p>\n

While the team is obviously disappointed in the result, they know this doesn\u2019t dispel a chance at a state title. The last two times Mariner went to the State Championship match, they had lost to North in the district final. <\/p>\n

\u201cThis team is special,\u201d Hagy said. \u201cWe have a lot of seniors that were up with us during that run their freshman year, and they want it bad. They\u2019re going to go down fighting and we\u2019re still in it. I know they\u2019ll show back up.\u201d<\/p>\n

Seedings for the regional tournament will soon be released by the FHSAA.<\/p>\n


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