PUYALLUP — Columbia River girls soccer coach Filomon Afenegus praised his team’s defensive work in Friday’s Class 3A state semifinal match.
But instead of celebrating a return to the state championship match, the Chieftains were left congratulating the Southridge Suns for two well-taken goals that produced a 2-1 win for the team from Kennewick.
The Southridge goals came from corner kicks nine minutes apart as the Suns overcame a halftime deficit to beat the Chieftains 2-1 at Sparks Stadium.
Columbia River (16-3-2) will play Bellevue (18-1) at 10 a.m. Saturday for the third-place trophy.
Southridge (19-4) will face Edmonds-Woodway at 2 p.m. Saturday for the state championship. Madison Schultz, a junior who has committed to play college soccer for power North Carolina, scored all three goals as Edmonds-Woodway beat Bellevue 3-0 in the other semifinal game.
“We still want to come out on top (on Saturday),” River senior Taylor Hallquist said. “We’re still up here for a reason. We’re going to have a good challenge. And I think it’s going to test us just like today did.”
Hallquist gave the Chieftains a lead in the 33rd minute of play. Joining the attack up the left wing, the outside back found space to cut into the 18-yard box. Her low shot from an angle squirted through the hands of goalkeeper Brittney Yocom and rolled just over the goal line as the keeper scrambled to recover the ball.
“Ellie (Walker) had the ball and was holding it up really well. We exploited that side. I took it in on my right side like I like to,” Hallquist said. “It wasn’t a great shot. She kind of bobbled it. It’s a little wet out here.”
Early in the second half, the referee awarded a penalty kick to the Chieftains for a handball. But the assistant referee ruled that a River player was offside prior to the foul, taking away a chance for a second goal.
Southridge evened the score with 21 minutes to play. Kelly Brown beat the defense to a Haley Thomas corner kick to score from close range. That corner kick came when River goalkeeper Lilli Delgadillo made her only save of the match, a nice diving play of a 24-yard free kick.
Nine minutes later, a corner kick from the other side put the Suns ahead. This time a River defender headed Thomas’ corner out of the goal mouth, but Emily Dirham had time and space to take a perfectly-placed shot from the far-side of the penalty area.
“I think what it came down to is that ricochet ball,” Columbia River defender Julia Drury said. “(The ball) came out and we all tried to press (forward). She just shot before we could get pressure to her.”
Afenegus called the Dirham’s shot a great one.
“Credit to them. They executed their corner kicks very, very well,” Afenegus said. “When it’s up there it’s 50-50 and we just have to go be the first to (the ball). They did a better job of reading it and attacking the second ball in the box both times.”
Columbia River pushed for the goal it needed, several times swarming the penalty area without finding a clean shot on goal. The best chance to tie the game came with 5:40 left. Hallquist beat the goalkeeper to a long bouncing ball, but her shot from a difficult angle to the left of goal hit the crossbar.
“Just a few more inches down it could have been in,” Hallquist said. “That’s the way soccer goes. It was a tough angle, but you’ve got to work with what you’ve got.”
Columbia River had several other promising opportunities. While the match was scoreless, Yocom made a strong play to stop a Walker breakaway chance. Jessica Allen got to the rebound, but a Suns defender was able to block that shot. In the 54th minute, Jessica Allen had an angled shot from 16 yards hit the outside of the net after a Marion Lilly pass escaped Yocom’s grasp.
“I don’t think it was unlucky,” Drury said. “We played great as a team. We just couldn’t capitalize and that’s how the game goes.”
SOUTHRIDGE 2, COLUMBIA RIVER 1
Columbia River (16-3-2)
Goals (assists) — Taylor Hallquist (unassisted), 33rd minute. Goalkeeper saves — Lilli Delgadillo 1.
Southridge (19-4)
Goals (assists) — Kelly Brown (Haley Thomas), 59th minute; Emily Dirham (unassisted), 68th minute. Goalkeeper saves — Brittney Yocom 4.
Halftime — Columbia River 1-0.
