As far as defeats go, Free State’s 4-0 soccer setback to Shawnee Mission West wasn’t bad.

It could have been worse for the Firebirds. They only managed two meek shots on goal and spent most of the game trying to keep the ball out of the defensive zone.

But their ability to keep second-ranked Shawnee Mission West’s high-powered offense at bay for most of the game made coach Jason Pendleton happy.

“I thought we played extremely well today. It sounds funny saying that in a 4-0 defeat, but when you come into a game with one win, and they’re 9-0, to do what we did was really positive,” Pendleton said.

The ball went into the Firebirds’ defensive zone from the start and stayed there most of the game. The Vikings applied nearly constant pressure on the Firebirds’ defense, but goalkeeper Megan Hrenchir saved the day — and an uglier final result — for the Firebirds on several occasions.

But she couldn’t be perfect. The Firebirds’ defense had trouble clearing loose balls in the penalty box, which resulted in a pair of first-half goals by Katie Lewis.

The first came seven minutes in, when Lewis headed a bouncing cross pass into the net.

The next goal came with less than a minute left in the half when Lewis caught another loose ball and fired a rocket just over Hrenchir’s head.

Hrenchir and the defense didn’t get much relief, since the offense managed only a couple of abbreviated runs toward the Vikings’ net.

Free State High's Banaka Okwuone (15) and Emily Erb (1) battle Shawnee Mission West's Alex Schiradi for a ball. The Vikings won, 4-0, Thursday at FSHS.

Except for when Jenni Brooks nearly had an open-net opportunity on a crossing pass, the Firebirds didn’t have much chance to score the whole day.

“The difficult part is, they’re so athletic that you have to concentrate on defending and know you’re only going to get a few opportunities the entire game,” Pendleton said.

The opportunities didn’t pick up in the second half. The only reasonable scoring chance the Firebirds had was when Alexa Moreno had a shot on the run, but it went right to Vikings goalkeeper Rebecca Ewing’s hands.

The Vikings backed off offensively until the final two minutes. SM West’s Meghan Cassady got a pass from Chelsea Curry — both of whom terrorized FSHS on the wings — and knocked it in for an easy goal.

The scoring was capped when Libby Kramer tipped in a free kick.

The score likely would have been more lopsided if it weren’t for Hrenchir.

But Hrenchir said it was brutal facing the Vikings’ onslaught.

“I definitely would have been happy if it had been 2-0,” she said. “But because of some of their shots, four wasn’t that bad, but you’re always looking to play better.”

Pendleton focused on the positive aspects of Thursday’s loss.

“Well, they’re the No. 2 team in the state and ranked No. 7 in the Midwest, so we knew they were an incredibly talented team,” Pendleton said. “We played extremely well, and they won the game because they’re a bit more athletic than we are.”