EDMONDS — Friday night’s game between the Shorewood Stormrays and Edmonds-Woodway Warriors was the Wesco 3A/2A boys soccer heavyweight championship bout: two weeks left in the regular season, two teams with perfect records, one belt on the line.
But after 15 rounds of knockdown drag-out action, first place will have to be determined another day.
Shorewood and Edmonds-Woodway slugged it out for 90 minutes, and when the final bell rang it ended in stalemate with the teams tied 1-1.
“I thought it was an incredible soccer match,” Shorewood coach Shaun Warner said. “It was really good to see both teams grind it out. We had questions. Were we capable of winning a state tournament in any way? I think both teams proved that we’re good teams.”
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Before an enthusiastic crowd at Edmonds District Stadium, Shorewood and Edmonds-Woodway played out a game worthy of determining a championship. The play was dead even, both teams created chances and every player emptied the tank — the way combatants from both teams dropped to the turf after the final whistle sounded was evidence of that.
However, a first-half goal by Shorewood’s Anthony Henry was canceled out by a second-half penalty kick from Edmonds-Woodway’s Andrew Montero. The drama remained high right through the second overtime, when the Warriors’ Ben Hanson managed to get a shot through Stormrays goalkeeper Conner Cann, only for Shorewood defender Isaak Abraham to race back and clear the ball off the line.
Therefore, the league championship will have to be decided by the last three games of the regular season as Shorewood (11-0-1 league, 12-0-1 overall) and Edmonds-Woodway (11-0-1, 11-0-2) remain knotted atop the standings.
“It doesn’t get much better than that,” Edmonds-Woodway coach Jason Hanson said about the game. “Friday night lights, soccer, that’s as good as it gets. It was exciting. I talked to (Warner) before the game and we both expected to be here. It was awesome, I think both teams gave it their all. That was a championship-level game.”
The first half saw the teams settle into a pattern, with Shorewood having more of the ball as the Stormrays built gradually from the back, while Edmonds-Woodway looked to counter by playing long to target man Victor Ibarra. The differing strategies nevertheless led to an even game, as Warriors goalkeeper Gabriel Wilhelm had to make an early reaction save to stop Blaise Clapper point blank, while in the 20th minute Ibarra blazed a shot over from 12 yards out following a deep cross from Richard Duncan. The Stormrays then had to scramble to block two efforts from Antony Cesar after chaos ensued from a free kick into the box.
It took an unfortunate gaffe in the 28th minute to break the deadlock. A misplayed back pass from the Warriors’ defense gave Henry a free run at goal, and Henry eagerly accepted the gift as he slotted past Wilhelm to give Shorewood a 1-0 lead.
The second half saw the roles reverse, as Edmonds-Woodway played the possession game while Shorewood soaked up the pressure and looked to counter. The Stormrays succeeded in limiting the Warriors to low-percentage chances, but in the 64th minute Montero trapped the ball in the penalty box and was body-checked to the turf by a Shorewood defender, with the referee immediately pointing to the penalty spot. Montero took the penalty himself and rolled it into the left corner as Cann guessed the opposite way, and it was tied 1-1.
“I think we turned things around in the second half,” Jason Hanson said. “The first half it felt like we were losing possession a little bit. I think we found our way, our fitness really showed in the second half, we started putting more passes together and I thought we looked good in the last 20 minutes.”
Montero nearly won it for Edmonds-Woodway with nine minutes remaining when his laser from 25 yards out cannoned off the crossbar. Three minutes later the Stormrays came close when Abraham curled a corner kick right on frame, with Wilhelm having to reach at full stretch to palm the ball away.
“They made us have to change some things in the second half, which we haven’t had to do yet this season, and I thought our guys responded incredibly well in changing things,” Warner said. “Overall I’m really proud of our guys. They had a lot of momentum in the second half against us, I thought we got it back after we got scored on and created a lot of chances, and overtime is always back and forth.”
In the end, the teams had to settle for a point apiece. And the draw means third-place Shorecrest remains in the mix at 11-1-0 — Edmonds-Woodway beat the Scots 2-1 on March 18, while Shorewood concludes the season against Shorecrest on May 1.
“(The tie) is a little unsatisfying, to be honest,” Jason Hanson admitted. “But I think we’re going to face them again in the playoffs.”
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