SEATTLE — The Marysville Pilchuck High School boys soccer team’s season came to an end Tuesday night. But the Tomahawks didn’t go down without a fight.
Marysville Pilchuck gave the Metro League-champion Lakeside Lions all they could handle, but the Tomahawks eventually succumbed 1-0 in the first round of the 3A state tournament at Ingraham High School.
“We had opportunities and didn’t finish, they got one and they did,” Marysville Pilchuck coach Paul Bartley said.
“We put a good effort on the field,” Bartley added. “Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. That’s why you play them.”
The numbers heading into the game suggested a rout may be on hand. Lakeside had lost just twice in its 16 games coming in and romped to the District 2 championship. Meanwhile, Marysville Pilchuck was barely above .500 and eked into the state tournament as the third seed from District 1.
The game went largely to script in the first half, with the Lions controlling the ball and taking a 1-0 lead. But the Tomahawks created several quality scoring chances in the second half, coming inches wide of tying the score on multiple occasions.
“We rally, that’s just the way we are,” Marysville Pilchuck senior co-captain Nate White said. “We’re not a team that gives up, just like a family were always there to support each other. If we see we have a chance we’re going to give it our 100 percent.
“We had hardships with the referee and what not, but that’s just like any other game, it’s soccer and that’s the way it goes,” White added. “But overall we played as a team, and I wouldn’t play any other way.”
Gaby Joseph scored the goal for Lakeside (13-2-2), which advanced to face the winner of tonight’s game between Kennedy and Mount Si in the quarterfinals.
Marysville Pilchuck finished its season 11-10 and feeling a great deal of pride.
“The name of the game was, ‘Work with what we’ve got,’” White said. “’The show must go on,’ is how it’s been. We were down eight starters at times, and throughout the entire year we were never at 100 percent. We had a lot of guys step up, a lot of guys surprised me this year. This is one heck of a team and I’m extremely proud of every one of them.”
Lakeside had the run of play during the first half, out-shooting Marysville Pilchuck 7-1, and 14 minutes in Sharif Kombo came close to opening the scoring. However, he lifted his shot over the crossbar after winning a battle for a ball played into the penalty box, and it remained scoreless.
But the Lions found the breakthrough in the 30th minute. Kombo played a diagonal ball over the top on the counter-attack, releasing Joseph free down the right. Joseph raced toward goal, then powered a low drive past Tomahawks goalkeeper Ryan Spiva and into the far corner, giving Lakeside a 1-0 lead.
Lakeside had other chances, and the Tomahawks were fortunate not to fall further behind when Joseph put a free kick from 20 yards out just over.
But the game changed in the second half. Marysville Pilchuck shuffled the deck, moving Sebastian Navarro from midfield to forward, and the Tomahawks immediately became more dangerous. Less than two minutes into the half Navarro had Marysville Pilchuck’s first real scoring chance of the game, which was saved by Lakeside goalkeeper Wallis Lapsley. Then he set up Vaughn Fahlman for a header that looped over.
The Tomahawks pressed even harder in the game’s final minutes, with Fabian Panduro-Galvan producing two chances. First, after a Marysville Pilchuck corner kick wasn’t cleared, he fired a shot just over. Then on a long free kick, the diminutive Panduro-Galvan somehow held off a much bigger defender and directed a falling-down header just wide.
Spiva made a dramatic kick save to deny Lakeside’s Sam Agosti, who worked himself free on goal during extra time, to keep Marysville Pilchuck’s hopes alive. But soon after the whistle sounded, ending the Tomahawks’ upset hopes.
At Ingraham H.S.
Goals—Gaby Joseph (L). Assists—Sharif Kombo (L). Goalkeepers—Marysville-Pilchuck: Ryan Spiva, Kole Bradley-Kuk. Lakeside: Wallis Lapsley. Records—Lakeside 13-2-2. Marysville-Pilchuck 11-10.
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