PUYALLUP — There’s only one thing the Snohomish boys soccer team never had this season:
Doubt.
The Panthers had no doubt in their ability to make another run at a state championship, even when the rest of the state dismissed their chances.
They had no doubt when they fell behind in games, something that happened three times in their four state tournament contests.
And no doubt about it, the Panthers are back-to-back state champions.
Snohomish captured its second straight 4A state title Saturday evening when the Panthers rallied to defeat the Central Valley Bears 3-1 at Sparks Stadium.
Blake Crutchfield’s long throw-ins led to all three second-half Panther goals as Snohomish overcame a 1-0 halftime deficit to win going away. It was the third time the Panthers trailed at halftime during the state tournament, yet found a way to win.
“These guys worked hard for it,” Snohomish coach Dan Pingrey said. “People didn’t truly believe they could do it again. It is tough. To be down the last two games like they were, and to come back and be successful, I can’t say enough how proud I am of them. We were all like happy dads, these last two days have been amazing.”
Brennan Judy, Hal Uderitz and Kristian Barney scored the goals for Snohomish (19-2-1), which overcame every obstacle thrown in its path. That included a Central Valley team that was a perfect 19-0 coming into the title contest.
Snohomish became the first school to repeat as 4A state champion since Decatur won titles in 2001 and 2002. The state championship was the fourth in school history, joining titles won in 2000, 2006 and 2014.
“The feeling is just unbelievable,” Crutchfield said. “There’s no words to describe how it feels. It’s unbelievable that we managed to win it two years consecutively. It’s going down in history.”
Noah Whitman scored the lone goal for Central Valley as the Spokane school fell one game short of a perfect season.
Snohomish seemed like it was in trouble when the halftime whistle came. The Panthers were trailing 1-0 and had created little in the way of offense.
However, it’s a situation Snohomish is plenty familiar with. The Panthers trailed Mount Rainier 1-0 at halftime in the first round of state, only to come back and win 2-1. Snohomish also trailed Inglemoor 1-0 at halftime of Friday’s semifinal, only to rally and prevail 3-1. So there was no panic by the Panthers.
“The reason we come back is because we don’t get too uptight, we don’t start worrying,” Crutchfield said. “We all keep calm and collected in the head and we ultimately fight back. We never give up, that’s how we like to play.”
And the way back was provided by a not-so-secret weapon. For four years Crutchfield’s long throw-ins have terrorized opposing defenses, giving the Panthers a truly unique goal-scoring threat, and as it has so many times in the past it proved to be the difference again Saturday.
It first hit pay dirt in the 58th minute. Crutchfield’s long throw from the left was headed out by the Bears defense. However, Josh Dombal headed it back out front, where Judy hooked a shot that went off the inside of the post and in to tie the score at 1-1.
Then it struck again in the 65th minute. This time from the right, Crutchfield’s long throw was spilled by Central Valley goalkeeper Andrew Enzler, and the freshman Uderitz was able to punch it home during the ensuing scramble to give the Panthers the lead.
Finally, Snohomish put the game away in the 68th minute as Barney headed in straight from Crutchfield’s long throw on the right to give the Panthers an unassailable lead.
“Blake has completely changed the game of soccer in Washington state,” Snohomish senior defender Gus Baxter said. “Ever since he was a freshman, once everybody saw his long throws they’ve been training their own teammates to try and mimic his long throws. They’ve never been able to do it. This was a perfect example, he’s a huge threat.”
The victory gave Snohomish a title many thought beyond the Panthers’ reach at the beginning of the season. While Snohomish returned the bulk of its team from last season, the players the Panthers lost — including 2014 Herald Player of the Year Uriel Herrera — were integral to the team’s success. When Snohomish lost back-to-back games midway through the season, those doubts appeared justified.
But after losing to Cascade 2-1 on April 14, Snohomish rattled off 13 straight victories to claim Wesco, district and state championships.
“I never doubted it, and (the players) didn’t doubt it,” Pingrey said. “We all knew it was going to take a lot of hard work. But it’s always nice to have that edge, that chip on your shoulder. The fact no one else believed we could do it, we took full advantage of it.”
For 40 minutes Saturday the doubters appeared to have a point. Central Valley had the better chances in the first half and grabbed the lead in the 19th minute. A Snohomish defensive clearance was deflected right into the path of Whitman in space on the right. Whitman closed on goal and beat Snohomish goalkeeper Alex Fairhurst at the near post from a tight angle, staking the Bears to a 1-0 lead. The Panthers then suffered another blow when key defender Eric Jones left the game injured in the 28th minute and was unable to return.
But Snohomish has turned second-half comebacks into an art form.
“We’re not quitters,” Baxter said. “We’re the comeback kids, we don’t quit.
“(Repeating as champions) brought tears to my eyes, I had to wipe them away,” Baxter added. “This is surreal, it’s unbelievable.”
But it was never in doubt.
At Sparks Stadium
Goals—Noah Whitman (CV), Brennan Judy (S), Hal Uderitz (S), Kristian Barney (S). Assists—Josh Dombal (S), Blake Crutchfield (S). Goalkeepers—Snohomish: Alex Fairhurst, Cameron Beardsley. Central Valley: Andrew Enzler. Records—Snohomish 19-2-1. Central Valley 19-1.
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