Despite injury woes, Columbia River girls soccer team gets gritty 1-0 win over RidgefieldUpdated 3 hours ago

Sometimes the best offense for the Columbia River girls soccer team is its defense.

Quite literally, that was true when senior center backs Peyton Dukes and Raya Janson linked up for the Rapids’ lone goal against 2A Greater St. Helens League rival Ridgefield on Thursday. Janson got on the receiving end of a Dukes corner in the first half to put them over the top for a 1-0 win over the 2A defending state champion Spudders, a rematch of last season’s 2A state semifinals.

Then, there were the all-out effort plays made on the Rapids’ defensive end of the field. For one, sophomore Maya Delgadillo was an unsung hero when she headed out a Ridgefield corner kick hooking into goal just minutes after River scored.

Senior goalkeeper Macie MacDonald made four clutch saves during the second half. Then, inside the final five minutes, Ridgefield appeared to have the equalizing goal on an empty net when River freshman Raegan Dukes swooped in to make a dramatic goal-line clearance.

These were make-or-break moments for the Rapids (7-0, 4-0) to seize an important early-season result over the Spudders (4-1-1, 3-1), who outshot the Rapids 16-1 in the game. In several instances, the Rapids turned to their young players to deliver.

“I think we’re really lucky enough to just have an amazing group of people,” Janson said. “Just at practice every day, everyone (is) lifting each other up. Everyone’s so connected, I feel like we’re friends first before we’re even teammates. So, watching a freshman come on to the field, there’s no nerves. We have trust in them, they have trust in us.”

The Rapids have a balanced blend of veteran experience and impact first and second-year players on this year’s roster, but a string of injuries have forced them to get creative early this season.

Injuries to sophomores Remi Buckley and Makayla Hundt have thinned out the Rapids’ depth at forward, while fellow sophomore forward Olivia Alvord exited Thursday’s game late after falling to the turf on a hard tackle.

Those injuries, in addition to “a bunch of other dings” the team is dealing with, according to River coach Filly Afenegus, left the Rapids all the more pleased with Thursday’s win.

“Quite honestly, we had to be super gritty,” Afenegus said. “We had a lot of players who hadn’t gotten a ton of minutes play today and they played a lot of minutes. With all the injuries that we’ve accumulated, for us to be able to bend and not break, and have the resolve to fight off a really good team, I’m super proud of them.”

As a result, all three freshmen on River’s roster, Ava Labrador, Maura Laurenza and Raegan Dukes, all played major minutes, though it was the latter who provided the signature moment with the late goal-line clearance. Like her older sisters, Logann Dukes, now a sophomore at Seattle Pacific, and Peyton Dukes, a senior, Raegan Dukes is making a quick impact on the Rapids’ defense.

“Obviously it’s close to my heart because she’s my sister,” Peyton Dukes said of Raegan Dukes. “But, it was such a proud moment for me because I knew she had it in her, and I’m so glad she got the opportunity tonight. Obviously she showed that she’s able to be out here competing with all of us.”

The Rapids have no shortage of experience in the middle of the defense, where Janson and Peyton Dukes are both four-year varsity players. They’ve been anchors of a back line, along with goalkeepers Ruby Ayers and MacDonald, who have allowed just one goal in seven games.

“Our starting back line now, lucky enough, we’ve played beyond high school and club together,” Janson said. “Me and Peyton have known each other for a long time, so being able to play here where it’s really intense, we are able to trust each other before, and that transitions here.”

Janson, however, says she still considers herself a forward at heart after playing the position previous years with the Rapids, but made the switch full time this season. She reveled in a rare goal-scoring opportunity by putting through the first-half corner kick.

“I’ve been playing center back for my club team,” Janson said. “Last year I tried out for center back … and I had an injury that took me out for almost the whole season until playoffs, so at that point I just went back to forward. Now there’s a space for me, and yeah, I’m glad to be there.”

The Rapids took some delight post-game in defeating the team they came up short against in last year’s state semifinals, but only for a brief moment. They remain focused on incremental improvements, and with some luck in the coming weeks, a healthier team than the current one.

“We always say, win, lose or draw, get back to work,” Afenegus said. “There’s always things to fine-tune, there’s always new players playing new spots. … No secret sauce, (we) just gotta grind.”

COLUMBIA RIVER 1, RIDGEFIELD 0

Columbia River

Goals (assists) — Raya Janson (Peyton Dukes). Goalkeeper saves — Ruby Ayers 6, Macie MacDonald 4.

Ridgefield

Match standout — Alyssa Carney

Halftime — River 1-0

JV — River 1-0