CAMAS — The history of Camas boys soccer is riddled with perils of the penalty-kick tiebreaker.
Saturday provided yet another gut-wrenching reminder.
Ferris of Spokane emerged victorious at Doc Harris Stadium by outscoring the Papermakers 5-4 in a penalty-kick shootout. The result sends the Saxons to the Class 4A state semifinals and ends the season for Camas.
“It’s probably the worst way to go out in soccer,” Camas senior Matt Palodichuk said. “You put everything you have on the field and then it comes down to a couple of shots.”
Palodichuk’s goal 10 minutes into the second half tied the match at 1-1. Despite dominating play for much of the second half — Camas outshot Ferris 8-2 and out-chanced the visitors 11-1 in the second 40 minutes — the go-ahead goal never came.
“We had the opportunities,” Camas coach Roland Minder said. “It should never have gone to a shootout. But there it is.”
The outcome might have seemed inevitable to the Camas coach once the match got to the tiebreaker. Of his 302 wins over 20 seasons coaching the Papermakers, only twice has Minder’s team won a penalty-kick shootout. This season’s Papermakers finished with 16 wins, three draws and two losses — both in tiebreakers.
Ferris, which will play Skyview in the Class 4A semifinals on Friday in Puyallup, took a 1-0 lead in the 26th minute. The Saxons took advantage of Matt Beaulaurier’s ability to throw the ball into the penalty area from the sideline. Forward Terry Cox got a head on the ball and flicked it past the Camas defense to Eric Hollenbaugh, who was wide open and took his time shooting the ball past Camas goalkeeper Sharif Batroukh.
“It was just a cluster (of players) when the ball got on the ground,” Batroukh said. “We were just a little bit late to the ball and they capitalized. That’s what they were good at.”
The Saxons were also good at playing as a unit. Especially in the first half, Camas found few gaps between the Ferris midfield and back line.
“They were organized. They were strong. They were winning the headers,” Camas fullback Sam Pizot said. “They’re a good team. I wish them luck in the Final Four.”
Minder rotated his formation at halftime, going with two attacking midfielders and one defensive midfielder instead of two.
The Papermakers broke through in the 50th minute as Pizot overlapped up the left wing, traded passes with Nate Beasley, then sent a ball toward the right side of the 6-yard box.
“I knew that one of my brothers would be there to finish it,” said Pizot, one of seven Camas seniors.
“I guess I knew where the ball was going,” Palodichuk said. “Sam always puts it in the same spot. We’ve been doing this since U-11. A lot of us seniors have been playing together since U11, U10. It’s sad to go out this way, but when I got that header it was a new light.”
Among the chances that followed for Camas were a Beasley cross tipped over the bar by goalkeeper Alex Pells, a pair of near breakaway chances for Cameron Eyman, and a Palodichuk header that landed just above the crossbar.
In the shootout, Camas made four of six, missing just wide once and watching Pells dive to his right to make the save that decided the match.
“It was just a guess and it worked out for us,” Pells said of diving about his right. “It’s a PK shootout. It’s all luck and guessing.”
And, for Camas, another painful conclusion.
