The biggest bragging rights of the young season came down to one penalty kick and River Hill's Kathryn Rodgers nailed it perfectly to beat upset-minded Wilde Lake, 1-0.

"It was a challenging game," the senior said after the Sept. 23 win. "Wilde Lake is probably our best competition. I didn't think it would come down to a penalty kick, but I did think it would be close."

The winning play began with a throw-in by Amy Song 24 minutes into the game. The ball landed in a packed crowd in front of the net and Anna Kim tried to settle the ball.

"Anna worked hard to get off a shot," Rodgers said.

Instead, a handball-in-the-box call put Rodgers on the line and she drilled the ball into the lower right corner for her fourth goal of the season.

Except for Rodgers' kick, "It was an even game," Wilde Lake midfielder Kristina Jackson said. "This game should have gone into overtime."

River Hill is now 5-0 in the county and Wilde Lake is 4-1. Reservoir also remains undefeated in the county after a 4-1 win over Atholton. Kelsy Reiff had three goals in the win for Reservoir in the Sept. 23 game.

Reservoir plays Wilde Lake Friday, Sept. 26 and River Hill Oct. 14.

Most of River Hill's scoring opportunities came off throw-ins by Song. She put 11 dangerous balls into the box, but Wilde Lake keeper Grace Koplow saved eight of them, and her defense cleared the others, except for the play that put Rodgers on the line.

"Grace is an amazing goalkeeper," teammate Caitlin Duff said.

Wilde Lake's offense suffered a big blow when striker Faryn Watts collided with River Hill keeper Carylynne Hudson and injured her knee with 18 minutes left in the first half. She returned in the second half, but did not finish the game.

"We play to our feet up top and Faryn is a crucial part of our offense," Wilde Lake's Beth Glaros said.

Wilde Lake moved the ball through the midfield well, but had trouble penetrating the Hawks' back line. "We couldn't get past their deep sweeper (Becky Perrault)," Jackson said.

"Our defense kept it together. Becky keeps us together in the back," defender Alex Vega added. Hudson touched the ball just a couple times. "That's what we like," Vega said.

Rodgers said the team had an additional incentive to beat Wilde Lake: home-field advantage for the county championship game, assuming River Hill remains unbeaten. The Hawks expect to see Wilde Lake again, Rodgers said.

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