RIDGEFIELD — Ridgefield’s first-round state tournament boys soccer win on Tuesday was as much the result of what the Spudders did without the ball as what they did with it.
Max Hauser set up one goal and scored another to give the hosts a two-goal lead, but the Spudders had to play some sturdy defense under pressure to hold on for a 2-1 win over visiting Liberty of Issaquah.
“We knew that we might get outpossessed,” Hauser said. “Liberty’s a really good team with talented players. Once you get to these state games, you have to weather the storm a little bit. You can’t just win possession over and over again. Everybody can pass, everybody’s good.”
Ridgefield will host Sehome of Bellingham in the Class 2A state quarterfinals on Saturday. The Spudders are hoping to play at 2 p.m. An official game time was expected to be announced on Wednesday.
The 2A Greater St. Helens League and District 4 champions, Ridgefield improved to 17-2-1. The Spudders only loss to a 2A school was by a 1-0 score to Hockinson in mid-April.
Despite not having a lot of the ball, Ridgefield did get three good chances in the first half and broke through on a counter-attack in the 33rd minute. The Spudders won a possession battle in midfield and sent a ball forward for Hauser, who had time to turn and send a nice pass into space for Jason Osborn who beat the onrushing goalkeeper.
“They had stepped one center back up. Jason (Osborn) just ran into that open space, the keeper came out and he finished it really well,” Hauser said.
The second goal was also a well-placed finish. On a free kick from 28 yards out, Hauser was able to curl a low shot around the defending wall and inside the right post for a 2-0 lead in the 54th minute.
“The wall was lined up right with the post and I’m a right-footer, so I kind of struck it just to the right of the wall and it just curved in,” Hauser said.
That goal proved to be critical as Liberty continued to own much of the possession and to push players into the attack.
“They did a really good job of stretching us out,” Ridgefield midfielder Andrew Williams said. “Our midfield tried to stay contained and tried to keep them in front of us as best we could.”
Liberty (5-9-4) finished next to last in its Class 3A/2A combined conference. But the Patriots certainly had chances on Tuesday, including a pair of Davis Noblat shots from inside the penalty area that narrowly missed the target. Ridgefield freshman goalkeeper Joe Lindbo — who is new to soccer — made five saves, the best of them off a close-range deflection in the 76th minute.
“He’s grown into a really good goalkeeper, and I’m glad he’s keeping us in these games now,” Hauser said.
The Liberty goal was scored in the 77th minute, defender Brandon Niblock getting on the end of a Ethan Diaz corner kick.
In the four minutes of stoppage time, the Patriots earned a free kick from a dangerous spot when the referee ruled that Cody Hughes was fouled just outside of the penalty area instead of inside it where he landed. While that chance was not converted, Liberty nearly tied it moments later but a bouncing ball was somehow deflected wide by an attacker on the doorstep.
This is the 15th time Ridgefield has qualified for the boys soccer state tournament at either Class 2A or Class 1A. The Spudders lost at Fife in the state quarterfinals last spring, and will be shooting to return to the final four for the seventh time in program history and the first time since losing the 2013 state final to Sedro-Woolley.
“I definitely think we can take it to another level, but I thought we played really well today,” Williams said.
