(WLOS) Tori Knight doesn't forget.
During the girls' soccer preseason I had just wrapped up conversations with Marianne Maxon and Emma Chavez, two prolific goal-scorers for the West Henderson Falcons. As I was walking out Knight (not so) casually mentioned to me, "You know, our defense is pretty great too."
I stopped and chatted with her, trying to explain how difficult it is to show defensive highlights and how similar it is to most sports.
The touchdown-scorer gets the highlights.
The big dunk or deep 3-pointer makes the cut.
Home runs? Goals? Got 'em.
Truly, defensive players get the short end of the stick when it comes to notoriety. That will change today.
Knight and her backline mates have turned in a stellar showing since the first kick-off, turning in 14 clean sheets across 26 games. In their four playoff wins, they have allowed just a single goal.
"We've been playing probably since age eleven together as defenders, so there's definitely a lot of chemistry between the three of us," said fellow senior Paisley Stepp.
"I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that we believe in each other," added Olivia Payne, who as a midfielder vacillates between defense and offense. "I trust that my teammates will be in the right position and will do their jobs at the right time, so that kind of allows me to play freely."
Knight took it a step further. "It's just it's crazy like telepathy to an extent to just know where each other is," she explained. "It's pretty crazy."
The 51 goals courtesy of Maxon are certainly remarkable, but should not overshadow the wall built in front of goalkeeper Ava Heffner who is averaging 3 saves per game.
"The old adage is offense gets the glory and defense wins games," smiled head coach Brian Brewer. "These girls are smart, they know what to do with the ball, they support one another, they can attack from the back, and they're just fun to be around."
The unit will face its toughest test of the season in the 3A West Regional Final on Tuesday. The #2 seeded Falcons will hit the road for the first time in the postseason to top seed South Point. The Red Raiders have scored 33 goals through their four wins, averaging nearly seven per game over the course of the season.
"Their forwards are really talented. They have a lot of skilled and experienced players, which is very similar to us," noted Payne. "I think that's what will make it such a great game."
If the Falcons do advance to the state finals, the defense will have to play a huge part in that.
Knight won't let you forget that fact.
"But defensive stats aren't a thing," she smirked.