No team, of course, is flawless in any game, but the Kickemuit Middle School girls' soccer squad was pretty darn close in its 4-0 victory over visiting Hope Highlands-Cranston in a 2026 semifinal outing played at Veterans Field in Warren Tuesday night, Oct. 27.

The reigning state champions were by far the bigger of the two dogs on the pitch, the Bristol Warren Huskies maintaining about 90 percent of the possession over their nickname-sakes throughout the 60 minutes of action.

The victory sets up a meeting with top-seeded and fellow unbeaten Burrillville for the state title Thursday night, Oct. 29, at Cranston Stadium. Kickoff is tentatively set for 6 p.m.

"The girls played absolutely amazing and controlled the game. We came out very strong and kept that momentum going throughout the game. We are so proud of them," said KMS head coach Thea Brum.

Second-seeded KMS dominated sixth-seeded Hope Highlands from the outset. Mylah Borges, Gianna Faria and Ellie Williford set the tone early for the locals with the dribbling and physicality. Their work led to an early corner kick, which Emma Overy took and curled into the far corner of the net for the game's initial goal.

By the ninth minute, the Huskies were up 2-0 after Williford headed in a Borges cross from the right side. The locals continued to push forward the rest of the opening period, creating more scoring chances, but settled for the two-goal lead at the break.

KMS continued its dominance into the second half. Borges got in on the goal-scoring action on a set piece. This time she was on the receiving end of a Mya Salvatore corner kick and putting a header into the net for her first tally in the 43rd minute.

If the game wasn't decided already, Borges sealed it for the locals when she got behind the Hope Highlands defense for the relatively easy put away to make it 4-0 in the 56th minute.

"We were confident going into the game, but told the girls we needed to come out strong and control the game because anything can happen in a semi-final game. And they did exactly that," Brum added.

The Huskies improved to 13-0-0 on the fall and upped their win streak to 28 games over the last two seasons. They've outscored their playoff opponents 16-0 to date.

Burrillville also enters the final with a 13-0-0 record after finishing first in the North Division during regular season. The Broncos, like KMS, have dominated their opposition in the postseason. Burrillville defeated Western Hills-Cranston, 9-0, Chariho, 2-0 and Cole-East Greenwich 4-0 to reach the championship round.