BENTONVILLE (KFSM)--At the start of the 2017 season, Bentonville girls soccer had to deal with an unfamiliar foe: a losing streak. The defending champs dropped their first two games of the season. Since then, they’ve put in the work to right the ship, says head coach Kristina Henry.
"So you don’t get too many games to kind of work out the kinks before we hit conference, so through conference it’s still a building process and they’ve just come together nicely."
Senior Lauren Hargus, who averages more than a goal a game, adds that it's just been a matter of "Practicing hard, we just clicked more. Team bonding. We just play as a team more, we’re not like ball hogs or anything like that"
Since those first two games, The Tigers have been hogging one thing; wins. They sit atop the 7A-West, undefeated in the conference. They’ve outscored conference opponents 46-2, and this domination has become a point of pride, says Hargus.
"It’s just super special, to us, to not have anyone score against us. I mean, I know it’s a big deal for other teams to score against us, and we just want to get the ball, clear it out, and crush ‘em. I mean, someone beating Bentonville is a big deal and we don’t want them to feel that feeling."
Bentonville has won four of the last five state titles, so it would be safe to assume that they’re comfortable with winning. But Coach Henry thinks it’s the senior class’s memory of 2015, they’re only year that ended in a loss, that gives them an extra edge.
"They’ve been on the losing end, so that, they know what it feels like to work hard all year , to feel like we can do this and then not win, they know what it feels like not to win, and so they bring that."
Even six championships in, she insists that this years squad is special
"They work for each other, really. That’s kind of it, in a nutshell"
And with another state tournament right around the corner, the goal is always the same.
"State Champs."