So far the second half of the season has been much better to the Hazen Highlander soccer team, who kept their momentum going and their playoff hopes alive with another wins against a league opponent Tuesday.

Hazen matched up with Mount Rainier for the second time this season and walked away with a 3-0 victory.

Hazen opened fast, with Meagan Kelly notching the team’s first goal at just the eight-minute mark in the first half. Madison Taylor has the assist. The early lead boded well for Hazen, who has had trouble scoring first this season.

“The last time we played Mount Rainier we won 2-0 but didn’t score until the second half,” Coach Ken Matthews said in an email. “In all but one of our five league losses we’ve always been down 0-something before we’ve scored.”

The Highlanders picked up two more goals from Madison Kem off assists from Anna Browne and Isis Hatcher to secure the win.

With their current run of wins, Hazen keeps their playoff hopes alive. Their next match against league-leading Kentridge, who beat them 6-2 in September, should provide what Matthews called a “measuring stick” on the team’s growth through the season.

Hazen currently sits in fifth place in the North Puget Sound League, with five teams advancing to the playoffs. Just four games ago, Hazen was in seventh place but has won three and earned a draw in three consecutive games against league opponents to earn 10 of 12 possible points.

Hazen is now 6-6-1 on the season and 5-5-1 in the league.