Herald staff
The South Whidbey Falcons girls soccer team is just two victories away from being the undisputed Class 2A champions.
The Falcons (15-5) face Naches (18-2) today at noon in a semifinal game at Federal Way Stadium.
South Whidbey and Naches took different roads to arrive at this game.
Naches dominated Ephrata in its quarterfinal game and won 2-0.
In contrast, South Whidbey was tied 0-0 with Washougal at the end of regulation in its quarterfinal game. The Falcons then needed two brilliant saves by goalkeeper Kellie Horn in the shootout to help them earn a 4-2 edge in penalty kicks and a 1-0 victory.
South Whidbey coach Paul Arand would like to avoid a shootout with Naches.
“I was looking at their past, and they have had four games go to shootouts, and they have won three of them,” Arand said. “I would like to see us score and win in regulation.”
Arand added the Falcons are well-balanced offensively and haven’t had to rely on just one or two scorers.
“The good thing is we have six or seven girls who can score,” Arand said. “It has been that way all year for us”
The South Whidbey-Naches winner advances to play the winner of Friday’s East Valley-Klahowya game for the state title. The championship is at 4 p.m. Saturday at Federal Way Stadium.
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