It’s been nearly two years since the Mountlake Terrace girls soccer team suffered one of their more humiliating losses of recent seasons.

It was October 26, 2021, when Terrace was steamrolled by Archbishop Murphy, 7-0, in the team’s 2021 season finale. But Hawks avenged that loss on Thursday, and did so in commanding fashion.

Behind a hat trick by senior Natalie Cardin and strong contributing efforts up and down the roster, Terrace thumped Archbishop Murphy 5-2 at Terry Ennis Stadium in south Everett.

The five goals scored by the Hawks were more than the Wildcats had given up in their first six games combined this season and the most yielded by a Wildcats squad since a 6-2 loss to Liberty on Nov. 18, 2016.

Cardin admitted that Thursday’s victory was especially sweet, as the team was motivated to exact some retribution on the Wildcats.

“Oh, this definitely meant something,” Cardin said. “Two years ago they beat us 7-0 here. So for us who were on the team two years ago, this was a huge game. We knew we had the skill to beat them this year. So it was huge that we beat them tonight.”

The Hawks scored the first three goals of the match to take control early. Ava Hunt started the scoring with a low shot past ATM goalkeeper Ashlie Latta in the 16th minute. Eight minutes later,  Terrace’s Claire August found the netting with a similar kick.

Cardin got her first goal on a penalty kick in the 31st minute after August was knocked down in the 18-yard box by the Wildcats’ Kamdyn Latta.

Archbishop Murphy closed the gap to 3-1 six minutes before halftime when Jane Bolin scored off a rebound; Bolin’s goal came after an initial shot by the sophomore was stopped by Terrace goalkeeper Jordyn Stokes.

While the Wildcats may have picked up some momentum by getting on the scoreboard just before intermission, it was short-lived as Terrace responded with a quick goal in the first minute of the second half.

After a steal by the Hawks, Cardin raced down the field on a breakaway and scored her second goal by slipping around Wildcats goalkeeper Elle Kahn and sliding the ball into the open net.

It was Cardin’s third goal that many will remember the most; the senior fired off a 30-yard laser into the far upper corner off a free kick.

Cardin said she had made up her mind to blast a shot at the goal while she was preparing to take the free kick in the 68th minute.

“I saw the keeper come out a little bit; I don’t think she was expecting a shot,” Cardin said. “So I was like, ‘I’m just going to send it.’ And it went in.”

Cardin, the leading scorer for the Hawks the past two seasons, nearly picked up a fourth goal on Thursday but her shot in the 34th minute rolled a few inches wide left.

“I’ll be thinking about that one tonight,” she said.

Archbishop Murphy’s misery on Thursday was much to the delight of the Hawks that have been haunted by the 2021 loss to the Wildcats.

“It was all good tonight,” Cardin said.

Prep girls soccer: Mountlake Terrace at Archbishop Murphy, Sept. 21

Mountlake Terrace 3 2 – 5
Archbishop Murphy 1 1 – 2

Goals
– Ava Hunt (Mountlake Terrace) in the 16th minute; assisted by Claire August
– Claire August (Mountlake Terrace) in the 24th minute; assisted by Morgan Damschen
– Natalie Cardin (Mountlake Terrace) in the 31st minute on a penalty kick
– Jane Bolin (Archbishop Murphy) in the 36th minute unassisted
– Natalie Cardin (Mountlake Terrace) in the 41st minute unassisted
– Sophie Pioli (Archbishop Murphy) in the 47th minute on a penalty kick
– Natalie Cardin (Mountlake Terrace) in the 68th minute on a free kick

Shots
– Mountlake Terrace, 13
– Archbishop Murphy, 6

Saves
– Jordyn Stokes (Mountlake Terrace), 6
– Ashlie Latta (Archbishop Murphy), 2
– Elle Kahn (Archbishop Murphy), 4

Corner kicks
– Mountlake Terrace, 2
– Archbishop Murphy, 0

Records: Mountlake Terrace 4-1-1 in 3A Wesco League, 4-2-1 overall; Archbishop Murphy 4-2-0 in 3A Wesco League, 5-2-0 overall

Mountlake Terrace next game: at Lynnwood; 7 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 26

— Story and photos by Doug Petrowksi