Snohomish wins opener

SNOHOMISH – The Snohomish boys soccer team walked into the locker room at Snohomish Veterans Memorial Stadium feeling somewhat dejected.

Panthers coach Dan Pingrey told his players he wouldn’t talk about Tuesday’s Class 4A state playoff match against Stadium. He was too emotional, he said, and didn’t want to say something he’d regret. Then he told his players – who were not any happier than their coach with the way the game had unfolded – that today’s practice was at 4 p.m.

Ah yes, practice.

Teams don’t generally practice after a postseason loss in a single-elimination tournament. Snohomish’s season will continue thanks to its 2-1 victory over Stadium. It didn’t occur in the dominant fashion they had planned, but the Panthers are in the quarterfinals for the sixth straight season.

“We came out with a victory, and that’s good,” said Pingrey, whose 15-1-2 team will play Gig Harbor in a rematch of last year’s semifinal at 7 p.m. Friday at Snohomish. “Every game we play from now on is going to be that kind of pressure and with that kind of skill level. We need to be able to step up and still play our game. Hopefully this is a very good lesson learned, and we’re going to be able to improve as a result.”

Just in case there is any confusion at this point, yes, Snohomish – a team that has repeatedly made it clear it will accept nothing less than a Class 4A state title – won Tuesday’s game.

“We were pretty disappointed,” said junior forward Taylor Cochran, who capped a flurry of Snohomish shots by scoring the game’s first goal 44 seconds in. “Even though we won, we were pissed that we let them back in. We just have to come back and be sharper.”

Shortly after Snohomish kicked off to begin the match, it seemed the Panthers were ready to dominate in front of a solid crowd.

Snohomish immediately peppered the Tigers (15-3-1) with five shots, the final one providing the Panthers with a 1-0 lead.

“There was a big scrum for the ball,” said Cochran, who scored his 16th goal of the season. “Everybody was getting a foot on it, and it was popping around. I was hanging out around the 18 (yard line) waiting for it to pop out, and it did.”

Alex Sirotak began the shelling when he took a breakaway shot from the left side. Keegan Uderitz and Brandon Crutchfield also were among the shooters, and goalie Jordan Jennings made two spectacular saves. Cochran’s shot from 10 yards out went through dead-center with Jennings out of position after his second save.

In most Snohomish games, the first 44 seconds would have sufficed. Stadium, however, tied things up in the 20th minute when Jesse Clark took a pass from Cameron Valentine and tapped it wide left of Snohomish keeper Ryan Riley for a 1-1 tie.

“An early goal – and you follow it up with another one – you’re probably going to win the game,” said Pingrey, whose team beat Stadium 1-0 in the first round last year before eventually finishing second. “An early goal … and guys start playing casual – that can be a curse.”

The Panthers got a footless goal in the 35th minute. Crutchfield, standing inches outside the left post, chested in a header from Seth Wilson for a 2-1 lead.

“I was just there for cleanup,” Crutchfield said. “Seth created the opportunity.”

Stadium took 16 shots to Snohomish’s 14, though many of the Tigers’ attempts came from far out while the Panthers switched to a more defensive game plan. Riley made eight saves, including a nifty leaping tip over the crossbar of a Stadium shot.

At Snohomish

Goals-Stadium: Clark. Snohomish: Cochran, Crutchfield. Goalkeepers-Stadium: J. Jennings. Snohomish: Riley. Records-Stadium 15-3-1. Snohomish 15-1-2.

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