Prep recap: She committed to Boise State soccer last week. Now she’s terrorizing defenses
Rocky Mountain senior forward Nadia Kincaid had her mind set on leaving home for college. She wanted to go out on her own and make a name for herself.
But a July camp at Boise State shined a new light on her hometown school, convincing the prolific goal scorer to verbally commit to the Broncos on Thursday, the eve of the high school season.
She’s laid waste to opponents ever since.
Kincaid recorded a hat trick Tuesday to lead the three-time defending 5A state champions to a 3-1 win at perennial 4A power Bishop Kelly. The hat trick gives her five goals and three assists in just three games for Rocky Mountain (2-1-0).
“It’s a weight off my shoulders,” Kincaid said of her college decision. “I was really stressed because most of my club team was committed, so I felt pressure to find a school now. Then after that camp (at Boise State), it just all flowed really easily and really fast.”
Kincaid said Boise State recruited her as an attacking midfielder or a forward. She showed why Tuesday, burning pathways to the Bishop Kelly (0-2-0) goal early and often.
The natural left-footed striker continually made diagonal runs into the heart of the Knights’ defense, finding pockets at the top of the penalty area for goals in the 35th, 41st and 57th minutes.
The Grizzlies return eight starters after winning their third straight state title last fall. But the graduation of Kelsey Oyler left an offensive hole, one Kincaid has quickly filled.
She said she’s had to develop a more assertive presence on the field, taking on defenders and winding up for shots instead of laying the ball off to the two-time, all-class player of the year.
“She has such a quick release,” Rocky Mountain coach Donal Kaehler said. “I’m not sure what we would do without Nadia.”
THE BIG PICTURE: While Tuesday’s game won’t count in the conference standings, it provided an early-season test for two of the state’s top programs.
Rocky Mountain and Bishop Kelly have won a combined six state titles and posted a record of 176-21-9 since 2016. But because they play in separate classifications, this was just the second meeting in history. Rocky Mountain won the previous matchup in 2014, 7-0.
Tuesday’s win gives the Grizzlies bragging rights, for now.
“This game was really important to us,” Kincaid said. “… We have to beat them over anyone else because they think they’re No. 1.”
POSTSEASON IMPLICATIONS: The game will also likely become a factor when seeding the state tournaments.
Idaho will use MaxPreps rankings to seed its state tournaments this fall. It won’t determine who qualifies for state. But it will decide where the eight teams fall on the bracket.
So a matchup between two of the state’s premier programs boosts both teams’ strength of schedule, a key factor in the MaxPreps rankings.
UP NEXT: Rocky Mountain hosts Skyview in a nonconference matchup at 6 p.m. Wednesday.
Bishop Kelly opens its 4A SIC schedule by hosting Middleton on Thursday. Bishop Kelly and Middleton finished first and second, respectively, in a 4A SIC preseason coaches’ poll.
TUESDAY’S TOP PERFORMERS
- Sophia Avalos, Mountain View (girls soccer): The junior scored in the third and 42nd minutes to lead the Mavericks to a 3-1 win over Owyhee.
- Satori Zimmerman, Capital (girls soccer): The junior netted a hat trick as the Eagles routed Emmett 9-0 to improve to 2-1-0. The Eagles had gone 23 straight matches without a win until their current two-game winning streak.
Isis Villafane, Ridgevue (girls soccer): The junior had a hand in every goal — scoring three times and adding two assists — as the Warhawks routed Borah 5-1.
Carter Griffith, Borah (boys soccer): The junior scored three goals and tallied an assist as the Lions rolled to an 8-0 win at Ridgevue.
TUESDAY’S SCORES
GIRLS SOCCER
Kuna 4, Meridian 4
Mountain View 3, Owyhee 1
Boise 3, Eagle 1
Rocky Mountain 3, Bishop Kelly 1
Skyview 7, Nampa 0
Capital 9, Emmett 0
Centennial 3, Vallivue 0
Ridgevue 5, Borah 1
BOYS SOCCER
Timberline 3, Caldwell 0
Borah 8, Ridgevue 0
Capital 7, Emmett 1
Middleton 3, Weiser 2
This story was originally published August 24, 2021 at 9:19 PM.
