LAKE STEVENS – What is the best way for a visiting team to spoil the home squad’s senior night?
The Snohomish High School girls soccer team found a stunningly effective method on Tuesday night.
Snohomish scored all three of its goals off of set plays – a corner kick and two free kicks – including Ashley Mincks’ game-winner that gave the Panthers a 3-2 double-overtime victory over the Lake Stevens Vikings.
Following a free kick in the second minute of the second extra five-minute period, Mincks, a senior forward, scored goal No. 2 of the season off of a header pass from Kristin Weakly to end the Western Conference North Division game at Lake Stevens Stadium. Snohomish (8-4-3 in division and overall), which had already clinched the North No. 3 seed in the Class 4A District 1 tournament, blew a 2-0 lead but recovered for the triumph.
“I think we focused because Lake Stevens has always been our really big (rival). … Our main focus was to beat them on their senior night,” Mincks said.
Snohomish, which didn’t score in its previous two games, put a major kink in Lake Stevens’ plans to earn a second-consecutive Wesco North title and an automatic 4A state tourney berth. Stanwood (11-1-4, 37 points) moved into first place with a 1-0 victory over Everett on Tuesday. Lake Stevens (11-3-1, 34 points) needs a win over Everett (8-4-3, 27 points), a 3A school, on Thursday to force a tie.
Hailey Garrity and Lacee Ross also scored goals for Snohomish, which defeated Lake Stevens for the second time in as many tries this fall.
After an uneven first half, Lake Stevens immediately seemed in synch in the second half. Its resurgence spawned a game-tying goal with 28:40 to play. Vikings midfielder Raelynne Lee controlled a deflection, winded up and found the back of the net to tie it at 2-2. It was Lee’s team-leading eighth goal of the season.
Lake Stevens generated several more dangerous chances the rest of the half, including a near-miss with 3:00 to go. But the Vikings, who had 10 shots in the half, failed to turn excellent openings into a goal.
“We just didn’t finish our opportunities,” said Lee, one of five Lake Stevens seniors active for the game. “We had chances but we didn’t put them away.”
Amid a steady rain shower, Snohomish scored goals in the third and 26th minutes of the first half, taking a 2-1 lead into halftime. Garrity, a freshman, scored Snohomish’s first goal off of a corner kick by Ashley Tombelaine.
The Panthers took a 2-0 lead after a free kick when Ross zipped behind the defense and converted off Melanie Bjornethun’s crafty backdoor pass.
Facing a two-goal deficit, Lake Stevens cut it to 2-1 with a minute remaining after Taylor Cochran squeezed off a nice lead pass, her ninth assist of the season, to Alyssa Licht, who scored from 15 yards away.
About 90 seconds earlier, Lake Stevens missed a goal by inches. Kinslee Isaman’s shot from the left side zipped past Snohomish goalkeeper Madison Goverde (five saves) and hit the far post.
Snohomish, which handed Lake Stevens its first loss since Sept. 26 (also against the Panthers), has struggled at times this season but appears to be heating up. “It’s been very tough for us this year as far as scoring, but we’ve been playing well,” said Snohomish coach Dan Pingrey, who noted that his team had several near-misses the past few games.
“I told the girls that the law of averages (will) eventually have to catch up in our favor,” he said. “And tonight, it did.”
At Lake Stevens H.S.
Goals-Snohomish: Garrity, Ross, Mincks. Lake Stevens: Licht, Lee. Assists-Snohomish: Tombelaine, Bjornethun, Weakly. Lake Stevens: Cochran, Pratt. Goalkeepers-Snohomish: Goverde. Lake Stevens: deMuelenaere, Three Stars. Records- Snohomish 8-4-3 in division and overall. Lake Stevens 11-3-1.
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