Mavericks falter in second half

The Meadowdale Mavericks were somehow able to hold off the Columbia River Chieftains’ attack for the entire first half.

The second half was a different story.

The Chieftains scored three goals, the first coming two minutes in to the second half, and defeated Meadowdale 3-0 in the quarterfinals of the 3A state soccer tournament Nov. 14 at Edmonds Stadium.

“They play a good game,” Mavericks’ head coach Chris Baldwin said. “They’ll do well (at state).”

Columbia River scored its first goal in the 42nd minute by Eden Behrens. The Chieftains sent a pass into a swarm of players right in front of the goal. After Meadowdale goalkeeper Julia Grossenbacher blocked one shot, Behrens collected the rebound and put it in the top left corner of the goal.

Columbia River struck again 10 minutes later when Mindii Hunsaker scored off an assist from Heidi Bucklin.

Hannah Kinsey scored in the 61st minute to round out the scoring for the visitors.

“Throughout the season, for the most part, we’ve put the pressure on our opponents,” Baldwin said. “They came out sharper and more aggressive than we did.”

The first 30 minutes of the game were spent almost exclusively on Meadowdale’s side of the field. The Mavericks were able to weather Columbia River’s offensive onslaught which had eight shots on goal in the first half, compared to two for the Mavericks.

The Chieftains were aggressive right from the start, which showed in their offense and defense. Columbia River was whistled for six fouls in the opening half, which eventually helped to get Meadowdale’s offense going.

The Mavericks’ two shots came in the last 10 minutes of the half, when Meadowdale began to turn on the pressure and find itself with a few opportunities for goals. A questionable offside call took away another chance for Meadowdale to score.

The Mavericks were unable to connect and both teams remained scoreless at halftime.

“We couldn’t establish our kind of play,” Baldwin said. “They’re a good team.”