The center referee blew his whistle abruptly ending the first half amid a chorus of vocally displeased Columbia River players, and immediately called head coach Filly Afenegus out on the field to tell him his Chieftains needed to settle down.
They had lost their composure, Afenegus said. In that moment, they did not look like the team that has thus far ran the table.
His message to his team at the half?
“We just need to be who we’ve been all year long,” Afenegus said. “It’s up to us to be able to persevere through that.”
Those words must have made an impact. The Chieftains wore down Ridgefield in the second half of the 2A district semifinals en route to a 3-0 win on Tuesday night at Kiggins Bowl to secure a return bid to the state tournament.
“The thing I really appreciate about this team is that we were able to come out hard and get our composure back,” Chieftain center defender Candler Bolte said. “This year is unique for the amount we recognize that we need to grind it out.”
River (18-0, 12-0 2A Greater St. Helens League) took a 1-0 lead into half thanks to a first time finish by senior defender Apostolis Kosaris in the 10th minute. In its game plan, Afenegus said the Chieftains recognized the Spudders’ tendency to push its back line up high, so River sought to make diagonal runs behind the defense, and play through-balls into space.
Early on, the Chieftains were finding forwards in space. Ridgefield’s defense was doing all it could to stop them.
Spudders defender Jonathan Flury picked the ball away from the Chieftains forwards with well-timed slide tackles twice in the first half, stopping what would have been one-on-one scoring opportunities.
But the Chieftains were unrelenting. Especially in the second half.
Sophomore forward Jake Connop scored the Chieftains’ second and third goals, each time making well-timed runs and using his physicality to power through the Spudders’ sturdy back line.
The first came seven minutes into the second half. Getting urgent, Ridgefield (11-7, 8-4) removed a defender and bolstered its attack. Then Connop struck again, netting the third and final goal of the evening in the 70th minute.
“That’s what Jake does,” Afenegus said. “He’s a little pitbull. When he’s in the mix like that he’s going to scrap and he’s going to do everything he can to put the ball in the back of the net. He’s going to fight for everything in there, which is why we love him.”
Connop sees himself as somewhat of a heat-seeker toward the goal.
“The only thing on your mind is getting the ball in the back of the net, so you go for the ball 100 percent every time,” Connop said.
Flury said Ridgefield planned for River’s through-balls and attack-oriented style. “They’re really good at what they do,” Flury said, nodding that the Chieftains deserve the perfect season they have up to this point.
The win for Columbia River solidified a matchup with a familiar foe — Woodland — in the district finals on Thursday at Kiggins Bowl at 7 p.m. The Chieftains have faced the Beavers twice, and won both matchups. They will be playing for state seeding, since both teams earned one of three total berths by reaching the district title game.
To be in the district finals is one step closer to River’s goal of a deep run at state. Last year, the Chieftains earned the top seed but were upset at home in the first round. That’s why they’re celebrating each landmark this season, and believe they will be better prepared this time around.
“I think it’s a sense of elation, sense of relief,” Afenegus said.
