Abdala Hassani scores twice for Marysville-Getchell boys soccer

MARYSVILLE — In the first half against Snohomish, Marysville-Getchell midfielder Abdala Hassani couldn’t buy a goal. The senior carved up the Panthers defense, dribbling upfield to create countless chances before things fell apart.

First, a shot redirected by a teammate just six minutes in was blown dead for being offsides. Hassani sent another shot off the post midway through the first half, then sent a shot into the side netting six minutes later. Mix in a couple shots sent over the crossbar, and Hassani was putting the ball everywhere but in the net. When the halftime whistle blew with the score 0-0, Hassani and his teammates took a moment to reflect.

“In the first half, we had our opportunities, and we just didn’t take them,” Hassani said. “Going into halftime, we talked about taking our opportunities and having to put more pressure on (Snohomish) as we were having momentum at the end of the half, so it was really just getting together as a team and putting in the work to lift the energy into the second half.”

It took only four minutes for Hassani to get on the board, and he scored once more later in the half to lead the Chargers (5-4-2 overall, 3-2-2 league) to a 2-0 win against the Panthers (5-7-2, 4-3-1). Marysville-Getchell held their third-place standing in Wesco North 3A/2A while closing the gap on second-place Snohomish. The Chargers did so while missing four starters and with sophomore goalie Laith Al-Bahathly making his first-ever varsity start, which also happened to be the team’s first shutout of the season.

Despite everything working against his team — both in the first half and this season as a whole — Marysville-Getchell coach Stephen Strom was impressed with what they displayed.

“We didn’t kind of let our guard down, which in the past, we have,” Strom said. “But tonight we kind of showed that character a lot, which was phenomenal.”

After Hassani scored early in the second, the Chargers clamped down defensively, rarely letting the Panthers get close to their 18-yard box. Snohomish’s best chance came on a corner kick with around 25 minutes left in the second half, but even then Al-Bahathly did not face a dangerous shot. Most of his work came in the first half, where he was up to the task.

Strom gave Al-Bahathly a chance to start after seeing his work in practice, and the sophomore rewarded his coach’s faith by playing with confidence.

“Mentally, I’m good,” Al-Bahathly said. “I know my team will protect me, and I know they have their trust in me and I have my trust in them, and I’m glad that we could have a bond like that. It’s just a good team to be working with.”

Hassani doubled Marysville-Getchell’s lead with 16:43 left, scoring in a similar fashion as the first goal: getting open, beating a couple defenders and slotting the ball low past the goalkeeper. After knocking on the door for so long earlier in the game, Hassani was relieved to cushion the lead.

“I just like scoring goals,” Hassani said. “I like winning.”

With three games left in the regular season, the Chargers’ attention shifts to their next matchup, the rivalry game against Marysville-Pilchuck on Tuesday. After Friday’s win, they feel like their minds are in the right place.

“(This win) was really important for us,” said sophomore midfielder Lexer Jeane Porras, who had an assist. “It’s good mentally, too, for our momentum going on to the other games.”