SNOHOMISH – After upsetting the Snohomish Panthers nearly a month ago, it was lights out for the Cascade Bruins Tuesday night.
Emerging from a rough contest that included six yellow cards, two reds and a 17-minute power outage, Snohomish avenged its only loss of the season with a 4-1 victory over Cascade in a Western Conference North Division boys soccer game at Veterans Memorial Stadium. Senior striker Taylor Cochran scored two second-half goals for Snohomish (9-1-1 in division and overall), which lost by a score of 1-0 against Cascade on March 31. Dan Bates / The Herald Kelley’s shot struck the crossbar and stayed out of the net.
“We had a bitter taste ever since that (loss),” said Cochran, a University of Washington-bound standout who tallied his 13th and 14th goals of the season on Tuesday. “We were just waiting to get (Cascade) back on the field.”
The victory kept Snohomish within striking distance of first-place Lake Stevens, which improved to 10-1 with a win against Marysville-Pilchuck on Tuesday. The Panthers have a showdown May 6 against Lake Stevens, a game that essentially could decide the Wesco North championship.
Since its loss against Cascade, Snohomish has gone 6-0-1, outscoring its opponents 31-3.
Meanwhile, Cascade fell to 6-4-1 and has lost three of its past four games.
The first half ended in a 0-0 tie as Snohomish out-shot Cascade 8-5. Both goalkeepers (Cascade’s Phillip Thomas and Snohomish’s Ryan Riley) faced significant heat, making four saves apiece in the first 40 minutes.
“At halftime we realized we were playing their game,” Cochran said. “So we just figured out we had to relax a little bit and play our game, and the goals would come – and they did.”
Snohomish immediately stormed the gates in the second half, scoring twice in the first 4:56. Jordan Dettmer scored the first goal from deep in the goalie box on an assist from Brian Ferrin in the 42nd minute. Cochran made it 2-0 about three minutes later with a 15-yard lob shot that sailed over the goalkeeper’s head and into the back of the net.
Cochran’s penalty kick in the 69th minute made it 3-0. Following the power outage, Cameron Wheeler converted a penalty kick to pull Cascade within 3-1 but Ferrin added a late goal to punctuate Snohomish’s triumph.
“This was big win for us,” Snohomish coach Dan Pingrey said, “and we knew it was going to be a tough match. (Cascade) always plays well against us. It wasn’t a matter of being nervous – it was a matter of getting the job done.”
First-year Cascade coach Daghan Kesim said he was disappointed his team failed to convert several solid scoring opportunities in the first half. “Our problem is that we just can’t finish right now,” Kesim said. The Cascade coach added that he believes Snohomish has what it takes to win the Class 4A state championship this season.
The opening half was very physical from the start as both teams committed numerous fouls in an attempt to gain possession or find any extra edge. During a memorable exchange in the 25th minute, Snohomish’s Brandon Crutchfield fouled Cascade’s Ayo Abebefe near midfield. Sitting on the turf after the contact, Abebefe kicked at Crutchfield in retaliation. A referee quickly separated the athletes.
Less than five minutes later, Abebefe received the night’s first yellow card for committing a foul of his own. Jonathan Foster (Cascade) and Snohomish’s Crutchfield both drew yellow cards before the rough half was through.
All five goals came in the second half, but the rough play continued, resulting in two Cascade ejections via red cards.
At Snohomish
Goals-Cascade: Wheeler. Snohomish: Cochran 2, Dettmer, Ferrin. Assists-Snohomish: Ferrin, Crutchfield. Goalkeepers-Cascade: Thomas. Snohomish: Riley. Records-Cascade 6-4-1 in league and overall. Snohomish 9-1-1, 9-1-1.
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