Four different players notched goals as No. 3 Columbia River cruised into the 2A state quarterfinals with a 5-0 win over No. 14 Kingston at John O’Rourke Field Wednesday.
The Rapids got the scoring started early in the first match of their quest for a sixth state title.
Olivia Alvord’s cross in the fourth minute to a rushing Remi Buckley was deflected off a Kingston defender into the net to start the River party.
Buckley left no doubt on her next attempt, deflecting in a rebound to give River a 2-0 lead in the 17th minute of the first half.
River had a chance to score seven more times in the first half alone, but Kingston keeper Harlow Heidl had five saves and the Buccaneer defense cleared two Rapid corner kicks.
“Everyone came out with a lot of intensity,” Buckley said.
The River attack kept pressing the issue in the second half, and Makayla Hundt broke through with a deep unassisted goal in the 56th minute to make the score 3-0.
Two minutes later, a Peyton Dukes corner kick was scrummed for around the net before Maura Laurenza tapped it across the line.
The scoring was capped by an unassisted goal from Azaylea Labrador with seven minutes remaining.
“All week, we’ve been practicing our offensive connections and I think we put that together really well tonight,” Dukes said.
River’s keepers, Ruby Ayers and Charlie Coakes, weren’t given much to do thanks to an impenetrable back defense that rarely allowed the ball to cross into the River defensive third.
“Our pressure was really big, especially in the final third,” Dukes said. “Our pressure didn’t even allow them to get the ball forward, which is a huge part of our training methods.”
Columbia River will look to advance back to the state semifinals in a home matchup with No. 11 Ellensburg at a date and time to be determined. The Bulldogs beat No. 6 Sehome 2-1 in penalty kicks in the first round Wednesday.
