WASHOUGAL — The season came to an end Saturday afternoon for the Washougal Panthers soccer team after losing 5-2 to the R.A. Long Lumberjacks.
The Lumberjacks move on to the state tournament with their third-place finish in the 2A district tournament.
Striking first, the Panthers felt confident that the birth to state would be theirs.
“After that I was very confident, I was feeling we could have won that game,” said Washougal junior forward Deivid Gonzalez who scored the first goal for the Panthers.
The elation and confidence gave way to heartbreak 74 minutes of soccer later. The Lumberjacks answered with four straight goals, leaving Washougal with the win.
“It was a good four seasons,” said senior Washougal defender Mauro Gonzalez, who scored in the game’s final moments as the Panthers tried to comeback. “I couldn’t be more proud to be a Panther. I’m proud of my teammates and how far we came.”
Deivid Gonzalez and fellow forward Sam Razumovskiy went to the air for Washougal’s first goal, exchanging headed passes before Gonzalez’s diving header went inside the right post.
With 11 minutes to go in the first half, a Lumberjack attack got the ball into the penalty box where Washougal was called for a handball.
Alonso Hernandez calmly converted the penalty kick for R.A. Long to tie it at 1-1.
The call and subsequent equalizer shifted the momentum in R.A. Long’s favor.
“We can’t get mad at our teammates, it happens,” Mauro Gonzalez said. “We just didn’t make it happen today.”
Hernandez broke the deadlock midway through the second half.
Freshman forward Jose Alvarenga fed the ball cleanly to Hernandez who collected himself to launch a rocket from over 25 yards out.
Alvarenga, too, was just getting started.
Alvarenga effectively ended Washougal’s party with 18 minutes left by cashing in a loose ball after the Panthers failed to clear the ball from R.A. Long’s initial attack, putting the Lumberjacks up 3-1.
The Lumberjacks scored a fourth on a 40-yard wonder strike from midfielder Raul Balbuena.
Alvarenga added another in stoppage time after Mauro Gonzalez’s goal to make it 4-2.
“I’m proud that we played our hardest during the last few minutes of the game,” said Deivid Gonzalez.
R.A. LONG 5, WASHOUGAL 2
Washougal
Goals (assists)—Deivid Gonzalez (Samuel Razumovskiy), Mauro Gonzalez (unassisted); Goalkeeper Saves—Tristan Roseff 7
R.A. Long
Goals (assists)—Alonso Hernandez (PK), Hernandez (Alvarenga), Alavarenga (unassisted), Raul Balbuena (unassisted), Alavarenga (Manuel Cabrera); Goalkeeper saves—Jesus Radillo 6.
Halftime—1-1
