Maddie Kemp nets 100th goal

Camas High’s head soccer coach, Roland Minder, has run out of superlatives for his star forward, Maddie Kemp.

“What more can you say about Maddie?” Minder said after Kemp grabbed her 100th goal during a 10-3 win over the Prairie High Falcons. “Nobody will ever touch that record.”

Kemp left the home crowd spellbound after the match-up against Prairie, as she scored six goals in one game and earned an achievement rarely seen in high school soccer.

Kemp had already broken Camas’ school record, after hitting 81 goals in November 2017. And those who knew the rising Papermakers star never questioned if she would hit the 100-goal mark. They just knew she would.

The landmark moment happened on Kemp’s fifth goal of the night, during the game against Prairie. After weaving through defenders and kicking a laser shot into the net, players and fans alike celebrated Kemp’s historic accomplishment.

“My teammates stopped the game, and the fans were so awesome,” Kemp said. “It was a fun moment to share with them and everyone in the stands.”

Kemp, who has committed to play at Gonzaga University next fall, started playing soccer at the age of 5.

Her first team, “The Supergirls,” included her Camas teammate and close friend, Callie Rheaume.

Within a few years, Kemp was playing club soccer with a few more of her current Papermaker teammates, including seniors Jazzlynn Paulson and Jenna Ephraimson.

“This Camas team really feels like a sisterhood, like a real family,” Kemp said.

The past four years have been remarkable ones for the Camas girls soccer team, which remains under the leadership of coach Minder, and Kemp has been a big part of the team’s success.

Kemp started as a freshman on the team, scoring 16 goals and helping Camas earn third place at state. In her sophomore year, Kemp scored 38 goals and the team won the state championship. As a junior, she scored 42 goals, and became the Papermakers’ all-time goal leader.

This season, as seniors, Kemp, Paulson, Ephraimson and Rheaume believe they have the talent and leadership to bring home another state championship for coach Minder, who is retiring after this year.

“I think we should all be playing, not for ourselves this year, but for Minder,” Kemp said.

Minder said his team still needs a lot of work if it’s going to make it deep in the playoffs again this year.

The Papermakers started the season ranked sixth in the nation, but lost their opening game 6-1 to the Jesuit Crusaders, who were ranked third nationally.

“That was our first game and they (Jesuit) already had three games under their belt. But, that said, we would have lost to them anyway, because Jesuit is one of the best teams I’ve ever seen,” Minder said.

The long-time Camas coach said the challenge this season is to make defenders out of players who are not experienced on defense.

“It’s a learning process, and getting them to play those positions is going to be a challenge this season,” Minder said.

Following the game, Kemp and her teammates posed for pictures as everyone celebrated the win and Kemp’s milestone moment.

“I don’t want to settle for anything but a state championship,” Kemp said. “We are capable — if we come to practice, work hard and do everything Minder tells us to do.”