Friday 20 November 2015

HS Update - November 20: Area teams prepare for State Final Four

Gonzaga Prep squares off against Yakima's West Valley in 4A semifinal Friday evening (photo: INWsn) 
The opening round and quarterfinals last week cut the field of the state playoffs down to four teams for the Final Four events being held Friday and Saturday in Puyallup, Shoreline and Sumner.

Gonzaga Prep and West Valley of Yakima square off in one of the two 4A semifinals Friday evening, ensuring one area side will be playing for the title on Saturday. Southridge is still alive in the 3A tournament, Ellensburg is still in the hunt for the 2A championship and Connell is up for the 1A crown. The St George's boys are also still playing, looking for the 1B/2B title.

4A ROUND-UP ##########

After three shootouts in their first four postseason games, the Bullpups of Gonzaga Prep have broken away from that trend and kicked off the state tournament with a pair of victories.

They edged Todd Beamer on Tuesday on a goal from Darby Doyle in the 19th minute and used a pair of Larkin Russell goals - one in each half - to down Bellarmine Prep in the quarterfinals Saturday.

The one ingredient that did continue for Gonzaga Prep, however, was the defense, which posted its fifth shutout in six playoff games. The only goal the Bullpups, led by goalkeeper Zoe Boleneus (six saves for the season), have given up was to league foe University.

It could be a defensive showdown Friday evening in Puyallup as the Rams of West Valley also boast a successful defensive record. They enter the match with a dozen shutouts in league and postseason play.

After easily winning the Columbia Basin Big Nine with a perfect 12-0-0 record and a 5-0 postseason win over second-place Wenatchee, the Rams were tested in their first state playoff contest Wednesday, going the distance in a scoreless stalemate at home against Puyallup, advancing in penalties 4-3 after suffering their first shutout against them on the campaign.

On Saturday, they blanked Ferris for their third shutout in as many playoff games with Caitlin Quaempts scoring her 16th goal of the season early and Carli Short clinching things in the final minute.

In other 4A contests, Wenatchee was knocked out 4-0 by Bellarmine Prep in the opening round and Ferris edged Chiawana, the top 4A side from the MCC, 1-0 to move onto the second round before being eliminated. Sydney Clements provided the winning goal, her sixth tally of the year, in the 13th minute for the Saxons with Alexis Murphy registering her sixth assist of the year. Chrissy Fitzgerald held the Pasco school off the board for her third shutout of the season as Ferris eliminated the Riverhawks just five days after falling 2-1 to them in the semifinals of the regional tournament.

Media Features: 

3A ROUND-UP ##########

At the 3A level Southridge opened the state tournament with a 2-1 win at home, rallying to defeat Auburn Riverside, which got on the board five minutes in. Haley Thomas led the comeback, feeding Kayleen Sambrano for the equalizer in the 48th and then scoring herself just after the hour mark. Thomas kept the run going on Saturday, finding Emma Schutt for the opener in the 43rd, but visiting Holy Names answered within the same minute. With overtime looming, Emily Russell struck for her first goal of the campaign in the 79th season to give Southridge the 2-1 victory.

In other 3A results, Kamiakin was no match for visiting Holy Names, falling 4-0. It marked the first time in official play that the Braves, who outscored their district and regional playoff opposition 18-3, had been shutout this season.


2A ROUND-UP ##########

After advancing from regionals against the three and four seeds out of the CWAC, the GNL duo of East Valley and Clarkston had to open the 2A state tourney against the CWAC's top sides.

East Valley dominated CWAC runners-up Prosser in a 6-0 contest in which Skylar Bastin scored three goals and Shannon Frucci had three assists. Bastin's hat-trick bumped her season total to 14 while Frucci doubled her assist tally.

Clarkston, meanwhile, came up short at Ellensburg, which dominated their league with an unbeaten record. The hosts advanced with a goal in the 67th minute against the Bantoms, and then reached the final four with a 3-1 victory over East Valley on Saturday.

Ellory Ferris fed Jordyn Arlt in the second and 24th minutes to build a two-goal lead for Ellensburg. Bastin netted her 15th of the year for the Knights in the 64th, but Reyna Schedler, who set up Wednesday's winner for Ellensburg scored in the 73rd courtesy of Arlt to lock up the result.


1A ROUND-UP ##########

In 1A play, Freeman was drubbed out of the tournament in an 8-1 loss on the road against Cascade of Leavenworth in the opening round while Deer Park survived a thriller, edging visiting Naches Valley 5-4 in overtime.

The Stags found themselves trailing twice and in a two-goal hole after 45 minutes. Brixi Mendoza put the Rangers on the board in the 10th minute with Riley Martinson answering for Deer Park in the 18th. Mendoza, though, scored in the 22nd and returned the favor to Kaley Roberts, who set up the first two, in the 45th.

Martinson, however, answered quickly with goals in the 47th and 59th to erase the deficit and Courtney Stark put the Stags in front in the 67th. Mendoza finished her hat-trick in the 70th to level things again and send the match to overtime where Martinson tallied her fourth of the game and 31st of the year in the 88th.

Cascade went on to defeat La Salle 2-0 in the second round.

Deer Park's run, though, would come to an end Saturday against Connell, which advanced from the first round via shootout after a 1-1 draw with Cascade Christian.

On a slippery, torn-up football field, the game was a sloppy affair, but Emmy Moore scored on a free kick in the 14th minute, putting it in off the crossbar from about 22 yards. It was only the sixth goal of the year for the midfielder, who boasts 18 assists thanks to the scoring exploits of Martinson and Jessie Thomas. She nearly repeated the feat a short time later, but this time the ricochet off the bar was cleared away.

Corner kicks late in the half proved the Stags' undoing as Jessica Garcia fed the ball into the box, finding Mattie Mauseth in the 31st and Jakkie Rivera six minutes later. Deer Park struggled to find an equalizer in the second half as they kept the defensive third crowded, which in combination with the field conditions limited opportunities for Emmy Moore and Martinson.

"Soggy, wet, slippery - both ways," said Deer Park Head Coach Sean O'Neal. "Yeah, we slipped a lot going forward. The conditions were a little bit difficult."

Despite the conditions, Martinson dazzled at times with her movement on the ball often times beating the first defender only to come up against two more. With a little over five minutes remaining she created an excellent chance when she initially went left at the top of the box before cutting and driving parallel across almost the entire top of the box before spinning to fire from about 25 yards. The ball slipped through the keeper's hands, but Thomas, who had 15 goals and eight assists this season, was unable to get a foot on it at the left post as the keeper scrambled to recover the ball.

Connell players celebrate after the final whistle (photo: INWsn) 
"Yes, it was tough, tough," O'Neal said of the way things finished for his Stags. "Connell is a good team - they played well. We struggled defensively today a bit on our corners. Other than that, I thought we created great opportunities to score. It was a little bit tough losing Riley. And Courtney Stark was real sick - she was in the hospital yesterday. I think pretty resilient with our performance... so, not to hang our heads, I think we played quite well."

The 2015 campaign may turn out to be a warning shot for the 1A opposition next year as the team is only losing one senior - Taylor Redford - and has a number of talented players joining the team next year that O'Neal expects to be immediate contributors.

"Only one senior, and some incoming freshman that will help this next coming season. They will help fill some of the voids that we do have, so next year should be an outstanding year."


1/2B BOYS ROUND-UP ##########

The Dragons have allowed just one goal during current 8-game win streak (photo: SGHS)
The Dragons of St George's are back in the final four after having their three-year run come to an end last year. They are looking to capture their first state tournament title since 2011 having finished as runners-up in 2012 and third in 2013.

Dragons celebrate at Prescott (SGHS)
"Saint George's has had a great season thus far. Last week's state quarterfinal match versus Prescott in Prescott was by far our best win of the season," said head coach Heidi Melville.

Saturday's match was their stiffest test of what had previously been an easy postseason slate. Michael Hamilton scored in the 26th and 49th to give the Dragons a two-goal advantage before Prescott got on the board at the hour mark via Jose Gonzalez.

The Dragons have dominated their class during league play this season but split earlier this season with Prescott, the classification's runners-up a year ago, in a pair of 1-0 contests that finished in favor of the road teams. The loss was the start of a rough patch for St George's in which the side lost three of four contests midseason, though the other two were against Idaho's 5A Lewiston and 4A Lakeland and it was part of a busy portion of their campaign that saw them play five games in eight days.

"Prescott is a great team. After we settled into a more reasonable schedule, the kids have really played well. Looking forward to our trip to Sumner. We play Friday night versus the defending state champions, Mt. Vernon Christian. Should be a great game. The boys have been putting in the work deserving of a great tournament. Hopefully it will all come together for us - two more games to go."

STATE TOURNAMENT FIRST ROUND RESULTS

Tuesday, November 10
4A - Wenatchee 0 :: 4 Bellarmine Prep
4A - Todd Beamer 0 :: 1 Gonzaga Prep
4A - Ferris 1 :: 0 Chiawana
3A - Holy Names 4 :: 0 Kamiakin
3A - Auburn Riverside 1 :: 2 Southridge
1A - Naches Valley 4 :: OT :: Deer Park
1A - Freeman 1 :: 8 Cascade (Leavenworth)
Wednesday, November 11
4A - Puyallup (3) 0 :: PK 0 (4) West Valley (Yakima)
2A - Prosser 0 :: 6 East Valley (Spokane)
2A - Clarkston 0 :: 1 Ellensburg

STATE TOURNAMENT QUARTERFINAL MATCHES

Saturday, November 14
4A - Bellarmine Prep 0 :: 2 Gonzaga Prep
4A - Ferris 0 :: 2 West Valley (Yakima)
3A - Holy Names 1 :: 2 Southridge
2A - East Valley (Spokane) 1 :: 3 Ellensburg
1A - Connell 2 :: 1 Deer Park

STATE TOURNAMENT BRACKETS

4A Bracket [+]  3A Bracket [+]  2A Bracket [+]  1A Bracket [+]  1/2B Girls [+]  1/2B Boys [+]

STATE TOURNAMENT FINAL FOUR SCHEDULES

4A @ Sparks Stadium, Puyallup
Gonzaga Prep v West Valley (Yakima) 6:00
Camas v Issaquah 8:00
Third Place - Saturday, 12:00
Championship - Saturday, 4:00

3A @ Sparks Stadium, Puyallup
Southridge v Arlington 2:00
Edmonds-Woodway v Seattle Prep 4:00
Third Place - Saturday, 10:00 am
Championship - Saturday, 2:00

2A @ Shoreline Stadium, Shoreline
Ridgefield v Ellensburg 6:00
Liberty (Issaquah) v Squalicum 8:00
Third Place - Saturday, 12:00
Championship - Saturday, 4:00

1A @ Shoreline Stadium, Shoreline
King's v Seattle Christian 2:00
Connell v Cascade (Leavenworth) 4:00
Third Place - Saturday, 10:00 am
Championship - Saturday, 2:00

1/2B Girls @ Sunset Chev Stadium, Sumner
Adna v Okanogan 2:00
Crosspoint v La Conner 4:00
Third Place - Saturday, 10:00 am
Championship - Saturday, 2:00

1/2B Boys @ Sunset Chev Stadium, Sumner
Mount Vernon Christian v Saint George's 6:00
Crosspoint v Tacoma Baptist 8:00
Third Place - Saturday, 12:00
Championship - Saturday, 4:00

If you have any updates for stats (particularly assists that go unrecorded for road games), please drop INWsn a note at snaeditor-at-gmail.com.  INWsn is currently missing scoring (and GK) information for 11.10 Freeman @ Cascade, 10.23 Rogers @ LC, 10/15 Moses Lake @ Eastmont, 10/13 Eastmont @ Eisenhower, 10/3 Pasco @ Walla Walla and 9.24 Medical Lake @ Newport games.

STATISTICAL LEADERS - SPOKANE AREA LEAGUES




STATISTICAL LEADERS - CENTRAL / SOUTHERN AREA LEAGUES



-- INWsn -- 

Thursday 19 November 2015

NAIA Cascade Conference Round-Up: Frontier programs take three of four NAIA berths from CCC tourneys

Penalties, penalties, penalties. That was a trend late last week for the Cascade Collegiate Conference tournament for the men and women. Four matches went to the tiebreaker, including both men's semifinals and the women's championship game.

Aside from a pair of close games on the women's side, the opening round quarterfinals were rather one-sided affairs on the scorelines that played out to the seeding. In the close ones, the top-seeded Carroll women took a one-goal decision against long-time foe Great Falls and fifth-seeded Southern Oregon edged out fourth-seeded Rocky Mountain in the other penalty kick showdown.

Rocky Mountain captured the double on the men's side, escaping a semifinal upset in penalties against Evergreen State College and narrowly defeating longtime rival Great Falls in a one-goal decision in the championship game. The third-seeded Argos reached the final to lock up one of the two automatic berths by downing second-seeded Corban in an epic 11-round penalty shootout. The Warriors, however, would go on to receive word a few days later that they received an at-large berth in the national tournament and will play host to Biola, which features former CC Spokane standout Devin Leon.

The women's Final Four was not quite as tightly contested with Carroll winning by two against Southern Oregon and Eastern Oregon dominating College of Idaho for a four-goal victory. The championship game, on the other hand, was quite a stalemate with the two sides deciding matters from the spot. Carroll took the tiebreaker to capture the double, but the NAIA tournament has them on the road for the opening round while EOU is at home.

With the first season of the expanded CCC featuring the four schools from the Frontier Conference concluded, three of the four automatic berths went to the Frontier programs with the Eastern Oregon ladies, which are experiencing a breakthrough campaign, being the lone exception. All four, though, do hail from east of the Cascades.

Here is a look at action last week around the CCC and more:

MEN  #############

Conference Tournament (Willamalane Fields - Springfield, OR)

Quarterfinals - Wednesday, November 11

Warner Pacific 0 :: 3 Great Falls 
Jon-Eric Krans gave the Argos the lead early in the seventh minute on a ball from Renan Zampieri and never looked back. Ian Ooko put the match out of reach with two goals, scoring in the 40th off a corner from Rasmus Madsen and again in the 53rd by heading in a cross from Christopher Chavez. Marc Girones made four saves for the shutout.  MORE [+]

Carroll 0 :: 3 Evergreen 
The Saints took the Geoducks to halftime scoreless, but could not continue to hold back the attack, allowing the opener in the 54th before Willie Spurr scored twice in a 27-second span in the 72nd minute to put the match out of reach. Angel Guerra (Wenatchee, WA) made four saves for the Geoducks in the shutout.  MORE [+]

Northwest 0 :: 4 Corban 
Four different players scored for the Warriors with two in each half. The defense, led by James Williamson (Coeur d'Alene, ID) only allowed two shots on goal in the contest.

College of Idaho 1 :: 3 Rocky Mountain 
The Bears grabbed the early lead five minutes into the contest when Steven Forbes scored on a free kick from about 22 yards out, but Admir Selimovic (Boise, ID) leveled things quickly for the Yotes, heading in a free kick from Kyler Auernhamer 41 seconds later. The two sides remained on level terms for another 50 minutes before Nolan Sherwood's cross into the box deflected in in the 55th. Donovan Luce (Billings, MT) added some insurance in the 69th, finishing a long run with the ball by touching it past the keeper.  MORE [+]

Semifinals - Thursday, November 12

Evergreen (3) 1 :: PK :: 1 (4) Rocky Mountain
The best season in Geoduck history came to a close against the 15th-ranked Bears in a tightly contested match in which Guerra made 10 saves as they were outshot 20-14 by RMC, and another stop in the shootout. Tied 3-3 after the initial five rounds, an Evergreen miss was followed by Colin Gregory (Billings, MT) converting his sixth-round attempt. The Bears broke a defensive stalemate in the 72nd minute when a three-man collision between Guerra, a defender and Rocky's Luce left Luce as the lone man standing, allowing him to knock the ball into the open goal. Despite a good game in goal, Cole Catlin (Billings, MT) bobbled an arcing cross sent in by Crisantos Chavez (CC Spokane) just three minutes later that fell into the goal, giving the Geoducks a quick answer.  MORE [+]

Great Falls (8) 2 :: PK :: 2 (7) Corban 
Just two weeks after an 11-round shootout just over a 100 miles away in Portland saw the Timbers advance in the MLS playoffs, another shootout went a full 11 rounds to decide the semifinal outcome between the second and third seeds of the CCC tournament after a back-and-forth affair. After a scoreless first half, the two sides finally found ways to get on the board in the second with the Argos getting the first. Krans returned the favor from the day before and delivered a cross to Zampieri, whose shot deflected off a defender en route to goal in the 50th minute. The Warriors answered in the 78th when Quamie Dinnall took a pass up the middle from Tim Kagey and sent it first-time past the keeper, but the Argos answered immediately when Lewis Derrett struck 31 seconds later off a short cross from Jordan Byland (Missoula, MT). Corban needed little time, though, to pull even when Travez Whyte who scored from about 25 yards out in the 80th. Corban outshot the Argos 4-1 in overtime and 18-12 overall in the contest, but the the match ultimately went to penalties where things still took a while to decide a winner. After the initial five rounds, the two sides were even at 3-3 with Great Falls rallying from a 3-1 deficit thanks to a Girones save and a shot off the post. The shooters converted in four of the next five sudden-victory rounds before the deciding 11th with Girones making a key save on Whyte's attempt after Rodrigo Souza missed in the seventh round. Tied 7-7, Girones converted himself in the 11th round for the Argos and then denied the shot from Bobby Hutchin for the win, ensuring a spot in the NAIA tournament.  MORE [+]

Final - Saturday, November 14

Great Falls 0 :: 1 Rocky Mountain 
The two longtime foes were locked in a defensive stalemate that saw just one shot on target in the first half and five total for the match. Girones made two saves for the Argos and Catlin made two for the Bears with the lone goal coming in the 77th minute against Argos keeper Henrik Sohn, who had entered the match amidst controversy for a mere five seconds as the referees rules Girones could not re-enter after leaving the field during a stoppage to change his shoe after a broken cleat split the boot. Sohn was forced to enter for the free kick and was unable to stop a perfectly taken 20 yard free kick from Forbes.  MORE [+]

Final Standings 

Rocky Mountain^ 11-1-1... Corban* 11-2-0... Great Falls* 10-3-0... Evergreen* 9-3-1... Carroll* 8-3-2... Warner Pacific* 8-4-1... Northwest U* 8-5-0... College of Idaho* 6-7-0... Southern Oregon 5-8-0... Eastern Oregon 5-8-0... Oregon Tech 4-8-1... Northwest Christian 2-11-0... Multnomah 1-12-0... Walla Walla U 0-13-0 -- ^ Clinched top seed, * Clinched tournament berth (8)

NAIA TOURNAMENT 

First Round - Saturday, November 21
Marymount California @ Rocky Mountain 1:00
Great Falls @ Vanguard (CA) 2:00
Biola (CA) @ Corban 7:30

ADDITIONAL NAIA - MEN #############

Biola University, which is headed to the northwest for the NAIA tournament, won the GSAC tournament. Devin Leon (CC Spokane) set up the opening goal in the team's semifinal win before being sent off with the score level. Despite the disadvantage, Biola went on to build a two-goal lead and hold on for the 3-2 win over Hope International, and captured the title with a 1-0 victory over Vanguard two days later. Leon currently has four goals and five assists for the season.

WOMEN  #############

Conference Tournament (Willamalane Fields - Springfield, OR)

Wednesday, November 11 

Northwest 0 :: 3 Eastern Oregon 
Freshman Megan Dimmler (Spokane, WA) put the Mountaineers on the board when she drove through the defense in the 21st minute, but EOU were unable to lock up the result until late in the match despite outshooting the Eagles 15-10. In the meanwhile, the defense limited Northwest to just two shots on target that were stopped by Jessica Parker (Boise, ID). With six minutes left, Dimmler combined with Zoe Anderson to feed freshman Alexandria Cuaresma for some insurance and then Cuaresma struck again just under a minute later to put the match out of reach, putting away the rebound of a blocked Crystal Schuder shot.  MORE [+]

Southern Oregon (5) 0 :: PK :: 0 (4) Rocky Mountain
The Bears were outshot 12-4 in the contest, but only allowed the Raiders four shots on target, which Lia Unterholzner stopped. Goalkeeper Samantha Kelley took over in goal in overtime and was untested before the shootout and saw all five shots go into the back of the net. Meanwhile, the Raiders got the winning save on the final shot by Alex Harvey.  MORE [+]

Great Falls 2 :: 3 Carroll 
The Saints grabbed the lead seven minutes into the contest with a free kick strike from Cassidy Hammons (Boise, ID) from about 35 yards out and doubled the lead when a ball from Ylena Gazdik (Boise, ID) was re-directed past keeper Kyra Dorvall (Helena, MT) by Madison Apsey (Boise, ID) in the 37th. Great Falls replied two minutes later when Jessica Watts finished from about eight yards on a cross from Lauren Ozdowski, but the Saints only needed a minute to restore the two-goal advantage with Michaela Kueffler (Billings, MT) scoring from about 15 yards. During a foggy second half the Argos made a late attempt to rally with centerback Ashley Todd (Cardwell, MT) playing up top, scoring in the 87th when she outraced two defenders to the ball and chipped onrushing Carroll keeper Jamie Carter off a long ball sent forward by Sarah Howell (Polson, MT).  MORE:  UGF [+]   CC [+]  

Corban 0 :: 3 College of Idaho 
The Yotes took the lead 21 minutes into the match when Camas Curran (Meridian, ID) scored from about six yards out off a ball played into the middle of the box by Sydney Woods (Meridian, ID). Jamiece Yizar (Pocatello, ID) secured the victory, finding Allie Boyd (Boise, ID) with a cross in the 53rd minute for the second goal and capping the game herself, scoring with seven seconds remaining on a loose ball from about 25 yards away.  MORE [+]

Semifinals - Thursday, November 12

Southern Oregon 0 :: 2 Carroll 
For the second consecutive game, an early free kick from Hammons gave the Saints the lead as she struck from about 35 yards out from goal in the ninth minute. With over seven minutes remaining in the match, another free kick provided some insurance when Brittany Girolami scored from about 25 yards away. Outshot 10-4 in the game Carter made four saves for the shutout.  MORE [+]

Eastern Oregon 4 :: 0 College of Idaho 
The Yotes could not stop Schuder. The senior striker beat a defender and scored 15 minutes into the contest to put the Mountaineers in front. In the 35th minute Makensie Forsyth (Prosser, WA) doubled the advantage. Schuder then scored back-to-back goals in the 59th and 61st minutes, volleying in a corner from Zoe Anderson for the first and chipping the keeper for the second after beating the defense up the middle. Parker made just two saves as EOU outshot the Yotes 17-9 and limited them to just two on target.  MORE: EOU [+]  COI [+]

Final - Saturday, November 14

Eastern Oregon (2) 0 :: PK :: 0 (3) Carroll 
Having already clinched spots in the national tourney, the two sides battled through a scoreless stalemate. Outshot 11-7, Carter made six saves for the Saints during the course of the match and another two in the shootout while the Mountaineers used all three keepers. Parker made one save before being relieved by Tessa Pitzer (Eagle, ID) in the 54th. Then freshman goalkeeper Val Gaffney (Spokane, WA) - the side's penalty specialist according to coach Justin Wagar - entered for the shootout and made two key saves, but a missed Mountaineer shot in the fourth round proved to be the difference. The Mountaineers were the only team to not allow a goal in the tournament.  MORE:  EOU [+]   CC [+] 

Final Standings 

Carroll^ 9-1-1... College of Idaho* 9-2-0... Eastern Oregon* 9-2-0... Rocky Mountain* 7-3-1... Southern Oregon* 7-4-0... Northwest U* 6-4-1... Corban* 4-6-1... Great Falls* 2-5-4... Oregon Tech 3-7-1... Northwest Christian 2-9-0... Evergreen 2-9-0... Warner Pacific 1-9-1  -- ^ Clinched top seed, * Clinched tournament berth (8)

NAIA TOURNAMENT 

First Round - Saturday, November 21
Biola (CA) @ Eastern Oregon 1:00
Carroll @ Spring Arbor 1:30

-- INWsn -- 

NCAA Round-up: Bozeman's Collins leads Stanford to Second Round

A handful of area players are still alive in their respective national tournaments, but the opening weekend of the event saw the season come to an end for Washington State and the Whitworth men. Among those still in action are a pair of Bozeman, MT natives at Stanford, where Averie Collins helped lead the Cardinal onto the second round in the women's tournament and Sam Werner scored in the men's season to cap off a championship PAC-12 season before they kick off tournament play this week.

Here is a round-up of the action last week from all levels of the NCAA:

WOMEN #############

NCAA Division I Tournament

First Round

Averie Collins (goStanford.com)
Northwestern 1 :: OT :: 0 Washington State
For whatever reason, Washington State has had a tough time in their tournament opener's. In their program-record fifth consecutive appearance, the Cougs also went to overtime for a fifth consecutive time in the first game of the event. Kaitlyn Johnson sent a nice shot on target 17 minutes into the match that the goalkeeper tipped over and three minutes into overtime Maddy Haro was nearly the hero, but her 20 yard effort dropped onto the top of the goal instead. It was the visitors, however, that found the deciding goal on a through ball in the 104th minute that eliminated the Cougar's season and career's for a senior group that has overseen a program-best four-year total of 50 wins.  MORE [+]

Washington 1 :: 2 Texas A&M
The Huskies fell behind in the 24th and saw the Aggies double the advantage in the 53rd. Washington tried to rally and in the 67th Kelcie Hedge (Post Falls, ID) beat the defense down the right side of the field and delivered the ball into the six, where fellow freshman Pascale Dumesnil scored at the far left post. That was all the Huskies could muster though.

San Jose State 0 :: 2 Stanford
The one-seed Cardinal got on the board 17 minutes in on an own goal as a defender tried to clear a ball off the line. Just before the break, freshman Averie Collins (Bozeman, MT) first-timed a ball played back to her just outside the six in for some insurance with her third tally of the year. They will play host to BYU in the Second Round on Thursday.



Northern Colorado 0 :: 2 Arizona 
The Big Sky tournament champion Bears, featuring Carolyn Cox (Spokane, WA), saw their run come to an end by a Wildcats squad that dominated the action with a 27-7 advantage in shots. Rachel Estopare (Bend, OR) stopped all three shots put on target by UNCO to register the Wildcats' shutout. Her sister Hayley nearly opened the scoring in the 13th minute with a header off the right post on a corner.

Furman 0 :: 3 Clemson 
The second-seed Tigers rolled to the win under the guidance of assistant coach Jeff Robbins (Spokane, WA). They host Ole Miss on Friday in the Second Round.

NCAA Division II Tournament 

First Round - Thursday, November 12 (@ Western Washington) 

UC San Diego 1 :: 2 Seattle Pacific 
Maddy Booster (Bend, OR) and the Falcons advanced with goals in the 19th and 50th for a two-goal lead that proved enough.

Second Round - Saturday, November 14 

Seattle Pacific 0 :: 1 Western Washington
The Vikings outshot their league rivals 16-7 in shots, but were only able to capitalize on one of them to garner the victory. Savanna Moorehouse (Central Washington Univ) delivered a through ball for the deciding tally in the early moments of the 86th minute. Sandy Hanses (Yakima, WA), Sophia Kallas (Boise, ID), Colleen Lindsay (Spokane, WA) and Malia Maack (Spokane, WA) all came off the bench in support during the win. The one-seed Vikings move on to face second-seed Azusa Pacific in the Third Round. The Vikings will host the third and fourth rounds of the tournament in Bellingham November 19 and 21.

NCAA Division III Tournament

First Round - Saturday, November 14 (@ Wartburg) 

Puget Sound 2 :: 0 Augustana 
Already up a goal since the 70th, Lura Morton (Moscow, ID) nodded in a cross served back across goal on a corner kick in the 81st to add some insurance for the Loggers.

Second Round - Sunday, November 15 

Puget Sound (4) 0 :: PK :: 0 (5) Wartburg
The Loggers finished a fantastic year still, technically, without a loss, going out on penalties. They dominated the hosts with a 25-6 advantage in shots, forcing their keeper to make 12 saves. They finished the year with a 12th consecutive shutout with the last goal against them coming October 4 in a 1-1 draw at Whitman. It was one of only three they allowed all year.


MEN #############

NCAA DIVISION III TOURNAMENT 

First Round - Saturday, November 14 

Redland 3 :: OT :: 2 Whitworth 
The Pirates' season came to a crushing end as they saw a two-goal lead erased before they were eliminated on an own goal in overtime. Sam Engle put Karl Muelheims behind the defense with a through ball in the 13th minute. He beat the goalkeeper one-on-one and to finish his 21st goal of the year. In the 40th minute three different players fired at goal with the first two being blocked and Eric Espinoza's effort hitting the crossbar. Three minutes into the second half Engle gave Whitworth what looked like a comfortable lead when the Redlands keeper, who came off his line, struck his clearance right to the striker, who immediately chipped it into the open goal from about 25 yards. Redlands replied with goals in the 55th and 61st to pull even. The deciding goal came six minutes into overtime when a low cross into the area was inadvertently knocked into the goal by a Pirate defender.  MORE [+]  

NCAA DIVISION II TOURNAMENT 

Second Round - Saturday, November 14 

Cal State Dominguez Hills (3) 1 :: PK :: 1 (2) Seattle Pacific 
The season came to a disappointing end for the Falcons, who took the initial lead 37 minutes in on a goal from Matt Merchant. Senior defender Bryson Pavel (Boise, ID) nearly the doubled the lead four minutes later only to see his shot cleared off the line by a defender. Junior goalkeeper Cody Lang (Spokane, WA) made seven saves in the match and another two in the shootout, but the opposing keeper made two stops in the shootout, including in the deciding fifth round. Senior Garrett Jones (Boise, ID) missed his attempt in the third round.

St Edward's 1 :: 2 Colorado School of Mines 
Back-up sophomore keeper Josh Clark (Twin Falls, ID) and his Orediggers remain alive in the tournament and will face

WEST COAST CONFERENCE 

Saturday, November 14

Gonzaga 3 :: OT :: 2 Pacific
The Bulldogs equalized twice and grabbed the winner two minutes into overtime to end a five-game losing streak. Pacific opened the scoring in the 21st, but Jakob Granlund registered the first of his three assists in the game in the 32nd minute on a free kick. Jalen Crisler headed the ball in off the crossbar to tie it up. A penalty put the hosts back in front in the 48th, but Ben White nodded in a Granlund corner in the 89th minute to send the match to overtime where another Granlund corner decided the contest when it deflected off the keeper and was put away by Crisler.  MORE [+]

Portland 0 :: 2 Saint Mary's
Loyola Marymount 2 :: 0 San Francisco
San Diego 0 :: 3 Santa Clara

Final Standings

San Diego 5-1-1... Santa Clara 5-1-1... Saint Mary's 5-2-0... San Francisco 4-2-1... Loyola Marymount 4-3-0... Gonzaga 2-5-0... Portland 1-6-0... Pacific 0-6-1

PAC-12

Thursday, November 12 

California 0 :: 1 Stanford 
Sam Werner (Bozeman, MT) tallied the lone goal of the game seven minutes into the contest for the sixth-ranked Cardinal. Stanford was given a bye to the second round of the NCAA tournament as an eight-seed and will face Cal State Fullerton or Santa Clara.

Washington 1 :: 0 Oregon State

Saturday, November 14

UCLA 0 :: 1 San Diego State

Final Standings

Stanford 7-1-2... UCLA 5-4-1... Washington 4-3-3... California 4-4-2... Oregon State 3-6-1... San Diego State 2-7-1

ADDITIONAL DI NOTES #############

  • Avery Miller (Yakima, WA) came off the bench in the Final as Utah Valley finished second the WAC tournament, coming up short in penalties, 5-4, after a 1-1 draw against 15th-ranked Seattle University. UVU advanced to the NCAA tournament, where the Wolverines will face SMU in the First Round.
  • Tyler Blackmer (Boise, ID) made five saves for sixth-seeded Wright State in a 2-1 semifinal upset win against top-seeded host Illinois-Chicago. In a tight, defensive showdown Blackmer only needed to make one save in the final, but it was not enough as they fell 1-0 to Oakland.



-- INWsn --

Friday 13 November 2015

CC Spokane headed to NWAC Final Four after doubleheader sweep

Despite two completely contrasting games, there was plenty of drama Saturday as the CC Spokane women and men came away victorious to book trips to this weekend's NWAC Final Four in Tukwila, WA. The women equalized twice before grabbing the 3-2 win in overtime against Everett and the men took advantage of a Whatcom side that imploded with three red cards en route to a 5-1 result in which the visitors also initially led.

NWAC EAST UPDATE - WOMEN #############

Everett 2 :: OT :: 3 Spokane 

The defending league champion Everett Trojans took the initial lead 10 minutes into the contest when a ball down the right side drew a Sasquatch centerback back out to try and stop the attack, but Lauren Allison, the league's second-leading goal scorer, got by and fed a ball in centrally to Claire Nelson for the finish from about 17 yards.

Aside from the lone goal, the half proved to be more of a chess match as each side spent more time trying to feel one another out, and Everett's ability to maintain possession made things difficult for the Bigfoot in trying to get offensive momentum going.

"I thought it was kind of a low energy half on both sides," said Bigfoot Head Coach Jim Martinson. "I think both teams, maybe, were feeling the game out a little bit. Possession on both sides was good, but nobody really had the energy to change the game at that point. After an injury on their side, we kind of had a lull and gave up a goal."

"Credit to Everett - they're good. The thing we talked about at halftime - and all week - is we've been down before and had our backs against the wall. We just keep going. Everett had the better possession in the midfield, but we just had to find a way to pick off a bad pass, capitalize on a mistake in the middle of the field and eventually it would pay off. Couple of times it did. Everett was good. I think this was a semifinal match today. Both teams are great teams that deserve to be in the Final Four."

Things continued to go in favor of the Trojans in the second half. Five minutes in Ava Mana'o got the ball in the right corner, and then drove through the center of the box past three defenders before having the ball knocked away. Four minutes later Nelson stole the ball at midfield and drove forward, firing a shot from the penalty arc that forced a nice diving save from Emily Busselman (Richland, WA).

The missed chances opened the door for Spokane, which pulled even a minute later. Alysha Overland (Moses Lake, WA) got around the defender on the right side and as she neared the end line sent a low ball to the top of the six for the finish by Maddy Boyd (Spokane, WA) inside the left post.

Everett was not done though. Nelson won a header at the top of the box and Allison finished, putting the ball in at the left post in the 61st minute.

It only took two minutes for the Sasquatch to equalize this time.

Cali Moscrip (Lewiston, ID) created the chance in the 63rd minute with a well-paced shot from about 28 yards out on the right side that a defender got a glancing touch to as it headed far post. The slight change in direction left the keeper out of position and Overland put it away at the near right post to set the sides even at two each.

With just over 10 minutes remaining, the visitors put forth a pair of chances to grab the victory with Nelson sending a shot from the right just wide left in the 77th. A minute later Anisa Uberuaga cut diagonally on the right side into the box, beating a defender and firing from about 13 yards, but Busselman made another nice save.

Spokane nearly found the winner themselves in the 79th when Erica Simpson (Post Falls, ID) got the ball to the right end line and dropped it back to Overland at the top of the box, but goalkeeper Emily Sorenson made a nice catch on the well-struck ball.

The balance of power clearly had shifted in the second half in Spokane's favor as the offense had awoken and was far more lively in front of goal; and hungry to score.

"That's been something we've had all year with Alysha, Sarah Melvin (Spokane, WA), Maddy, Erica and Stephanie Overland (Moses Lake, WA). The kids we've got up top - their speed, athleticism is great. And that's something we said going into overtime. Let's get the ball forward. Let's get it to our forwards - let them go to work. The legs in the middle of the field for us were tired and the backs had done a lot of work, so we wanted to get the ball forward and let them go to work - and they did. It paid off."

That payoff came just two minutes into the extra session, though it took a few moments for everyone to realize it was over.

The Bigfoot caught the Trojans a bit by surprise when Stephanie Overland got the ball on the right side and sent a ball in toward goal that floated toward the goal and dipping in under the crossbar. The keeper, caught slightly out of position, reached back and pulled it out, but the assistant referee signaled that the ball had crossed the line and moments later the whistle sounded and the celebration ensued.

Though her sister is the NWAC's leading scorer, Stephanie Overland has now scored in three consecutive games - two critical in moments with the first clinching the division title in a 2-1 win over North Idaho 10 days prior.

"She's getting the game-winners. She got the game-winner in the East region title game, she hits the game-winner today. So let's keep that going into the Final Four for her. Step up and hit the big ones."

Other Results

North Idaho 0 :: 1 Peninsula 
The Cardinals nearly made it a pair of East Division teams in the Final Four, but perennial power Peninsula broke the scoreless stalemate with a goal in the 105th minute to book a fifth consecutive trip to the Final Four.

Clark 0 :: 2 Highline
Shoreline (4) 0 :: PK :: 0 (3) Lane

NWAC FINAL FOUR

Saturday, November 14

Shoreline v Spokane 10:30
Highline v Peninsula 1:00

Sunday, November 15

All-Star Match 10:30
Championship Match 3:00

[All games available on YouTube]

NWAC EAST UPDATE - MEN #############

Whatcom 1 :: 5 Spokane 

Both teams got off to a quick start. Spokane nearly opened with a goal two minutes in, but an offside call halted their first chance. A minute later the Orcas nearly took the lead when a shot from about 30 yards on the left side with pace tested Bigfoot goalkeeper Kevin Alvarez. The rebound was struck to the far post but he leapt out to smother it.

The visitors did, however, get on the board first, continuing a trend of falling behind early that the Sasquatch can't seem to shake. Kevin Miranda got the ball and from about 28 yards out struck a fantastic ball on the center right side of the field that rocketed inside the left post in the 18th minute.

From that point, Spokane dominated things and as things got chippy, it spiraled out of control for the visitors.

A minute after Whatcom went in front, the Bigfoot had shouts for a red card on the Orcas keeper Hector Gutierrez, who had come out of the box and fouled Johnny Cortez (Moses Lake, WA) about 27 yards from goal on a breakaway toward goal. He went undisciplined.

Spokane did pull even, though, in the 23rd minute when Mario Zarate (Richland, WA) got the ball about 10 yards out from the outside right corner of the box. He switched the ball to the left, putting Eric Sanchez-Flores behind the back line. The striker beat Gutierrez to the ball, deftly knocking it past the keeper and inside the far side netting to make things even.

In the 29th minute, the visitors lost the first of three players to a red card in the match. Thomas Alvarado was initially shown a yellow for an elbow as he went up for a header, but during the heated dissent after the call the referee pulled the red from his pocket and sent him off.

Three minutes later, Everett goal scorer Miranda was dismissed as well for an elbow to the face as he went in to challenge for a 50-50 ball, receiving a straight red card on the infraction.

The visitors did well to manage their shortcomings to get to the break without falling behind, but Spokane came out firing on all cylinders and were too much to contain without a full squad.

Just four minutes in Cortez connected with Breno Rocha, but Gutierrez made a nice diving save.

A minute later, however, luck was not on the keeper's side when a 23 yard free kick from about 23 yards smacked off the crossbar, and after a few deflections was buried by Cortez for the lead in the 50th minute.

Two minutes later Whatcom had a last decent chance to score with a series of chances. After the first opportunity led to a corner, the service in on the restart found the head of Will Kingman, but the attempt was saved. The rebound kept the play alive though, creating a mad scramble in the box that saw the Sasquatch make several blocks on shot attempts before Alvarez smothered the ball.

The missed Orca chances were nearly answered with an immediate goal from the hosts when a Whatcom corner led to a quick counter for the Sasquatch that was nearly finished by Cortez.

Then in the 55th Rocha missed just wide right after being put in behind the bunkered in defense.

With the match firmly in Spokane's control and Whatcom trying to keep themselves alive, things got even more difficult for the Orcas when the referee halted the action in the 66th minute. After a brief discussion with one of his assistant referees, he brandished a red card a third time, this time sending off Uriel Herrera, who had apparently used abusive language towards the officials away from the play.

Two minutes later the Sasquatch locked up the result when Sanchez-Flores sent in a cross from the right corner that Cortez brought down outside the far post and hammered in from nine yards.

Rocha finally found the back of the net in the 70th minute on a ball Cortez, finding the back of the net with a fantastic side-volley finish.

Joseph Lea rounded-out the scoring with 10 minutes left via Jared Davis as many of the bench players began to see time for the Bigfoot.

Other Results

Walla Walla 0 :: 1 Peninsula 
Trevan Estrellado (Cheney, WA) provided the deciding goal in the contest, scoring in the 55th minute to send the Pirates to their fifth Final Four appearance in six years after coming up short a year ago in a quarterfinal loss to the East's North Idaho College.

Chemeketa (5) 3 :: PK :: 3 (4) Highline
Tacoma (4) 0 :: PK :: 0 (3) Clark

NWAC FINAL FOUR

Saturday, November 14

Tacoma v Spokane 3:30
Chemeketa v Peninsula 6:00

Sunday, November 15

All-Star Match 12:30
Championship Match 5:30

[All games available on YouTube]


-- INWsn --

Thursday 12 November 2015

Division II & III Round-Up: Whitworth to face Redlands in NCAA DIII opener

In the end, the Whitworth Pirates were not facing a must-win situation as second-place Pacific Lutheran lost earlier in the evening to rival Puget Sound, but they capped the season against rival Whitman with a celebratory 3-1 victory in which Karl Muelheims set a school record.

The Northwest Conference championship booked the Bucs a spot in the Division III tournament in which they will travel to San Antonio for the first two rounds of the event. First, they will square off against University of Redlands, which features defender Ben Thompson (Spokane, WA), who knows Muelheims well from playing with him on the Spokane Shadow First Team in EPLWA.

Puget Sound won the NWC title on the women's side, yet again. Their 14th consecutive title has them playing Augustana in the first round of the tournament.

In the GNAC, Seattle Pacific will play host to the first two round games in the Division II men's tournament after winning the regular season title, facing the winner of the first round contest between CSUDH and Fresno Pacific.

Their counterparts on the women's side advanced as an at-large berth to the tournament and will face UC San Diego in the opening round with the winner advancing to face GNAC season and playoff champion Western Washington, which is hosting both matches.

Here's a recap of Division II & Division III action for last week

GNAC MEN #############

Saturday, November 7

Mary 3 :: 3 MSU-Billings 
Trailing after a 19th minute strike, the Yellowjackets pulled even in the 30th when Thiago Novic nodded in a cross from Julian Toenges. Less than two minutes into the second half the two repeated their efforts to put the hosts in front. A back pass bobbled by the visiting keeper allowed Jacob Richter to score what proved to be an important third goal as the visitors rallied with goals in the 74th and 88th.  MORE [+]

Northwest Nazarene 3 :: 1 Concordia 
The Crusaders fell behind eight minutes into the match, but tallied three unanswered in the second half for the victory. Fernando Alvarez finished from close range on a Luke Broz ball across the box in the 56th to even things up. Alex Mitrovic put them in front in the 66th with a 35 yard strike into the upper corner and Jaime Verdin added some insurance on a ball from Erik Anderson in the 79th.  MORE [+]

Saint Martin's 0 :: 3 Seattle Pacific 
With the top spot clinched goalkeeper Cody Lang (Spokane, WA) rested for the night with a pair of seniors combining for the shutout in the home season finale.

Western Washington 0 :: 2 Simon Fraser

Final Standings 

Seattle Pacific 10-1-3... Simon Fraser 9-2-3... Northwest Nazarene 8-5-1... MSU-Billings 6-5-3... Concordia 5-4-5... Saint Martin's 4-10-0... Western Washington 3-9-2... Mary 2-11-1  -- No conference tournament

GNAC WOMEN #############

Thursday, November 5 - Semifinals

MSU-Billings 0 :: 4 Western Washington 
The Vikings led by one after 13 minutes when a save by Chloe Hopps was headed in off the rebound. The Yellowjackets kept things tight until the second half when the Vikings added a second in the 63rd and two more in the final four minutes.  MORE [+]

Seattle Pacific 1 :: OT :: 0 Concordia 
Defender Maddy Booster (Bend, OR) helped lead the Falcon defense to a shutout performance in the upset win over the Cavaliers in which the winning tally came with less than two minutes left. Concordia's defensive effort was led, in part, by Martha Heaps (Spokane, WA) and Hannah Smith (Spokane, WA) on the back line.

Saturday, November 7 - Championship

Seattle Pacific 1 :: 3 Western Washington
An own goal put the Vikings ahead in the first half. They added a second a minute after the break and another own goal pushed the lead to three with the Falcons only reply coming on a penalty.

Final Standings

Western Washington^ 11-0-1... Concordia* 8-2-2... Seattle Pacific* 7-3-2... MSU-Billings* 6-5-1... Simon Fraser 5-6-1... Central Washington 5-6-1... Western Oregon 4-7-1... Northwest Nazarene 2-9-1... Saint Martin's 1-11-0 -- ^ Clinched top seed, * Clinched tournament berth (4)

NWC MEN #############

Saturday, November 7

Whitworth 3 :: 1 Whitman 
With the league title locked up from Pacific Lutheran's loss earlier in the evening, the Pirates celebrated with a win over their regional rival. Karl Muelheims (Spokane, WA) broke the school's single-season scoring record with his 20th goal of the campaign, surpassing the previous mark set by John Gould in 1988. The record-setting goal was a 20-yard strike on a ball from Sam Engle. Rylan Berriman fed Eric Espinoza for the second in the 29th and Alfredo Omelas pushed it to three via Jonah Snyder in the 80th. Colin Faunt spoiled Timmy Costa's shutout bid in the 89th.  MORE:  WU [+]   WC [+]   

Pacific 3 :: 2 George Fox
Willamette 3 :: OT :: 2 Linfield
Puget Sound 2 :: 1 Pacific Lutheran

Final Standings

Whitworth 12-1-1... Pacific Lutheran 11-3-0... Puget Sound 8-4-2... Pacific 5-8-1... Willamette 5-8-1... Linfield 5-9-0... George Fox 3-8-3... Whitman 2-10-2 -- No conference tournament

NWC WOMEN #############

Friday, November 6

Willamette 2 :: 1 Pacific 
Veronica Ewers (Moscow, ID) scored twice in the opening 16 minutes, heading in a corner from McKenzie Andringa (Yakima, WA) in the fourth minute.

Saturday, November 7

Lewis & Clark 4 :: 2 Whitworth
The Pirates got off to a great start with a nice long-range goal from Tiara Pajimola (Spokane, WA) 15 minutes in off a ball from Dallas Nelson. Nine minutes later Jennifer Loehner (Spokane, WA) fed Kelly Wucherer for the second. The second half, though, was another story as the Pioneers rolled off four unanswered.  MORE [+]

Puget Sound 1 :: 0 George Fox
Pacific Lutheran 0 :: 0 Linfield

Sunday, November 8

Lewis & Clark 1 :: 2 Whitman  
Like the Pirates the day before, the Missionaries kept the Pioneers off the board in the first half, but things played out differently in the second half. Chelsea Day put the hosts on the board in the 74th only to see the Pioneers answer 15 seconds later. It looked like the contest was headed to overtime when Brianna Brown struck for the winner with just 32 seconds remaining on the clock.  MORE [+]

Puget Sound 2 :: 0 Willamette
George Fox 0 :: 2 Linfield
Pacific Lutheran 1 :: 2 Pacific

Final Standings

Puget Sound 12-0-4... Pacific Lutheran 11-3-2... Willamette 9-6-1... Linfield 7-5-4... Lewis & Clark 7-8-1... Whitman 3-7-6... Whitworth 4-9-3... Pacific 4-10-2... George Fox 3-12-1 -- No conference tournament


-- INWsn -- 

Wednesday 11 November 2015

Division I Round-up: Washington State to host Northwestern in NCAA opener


The Washington State University ladies, as an at-large selection, were the lone side from the region to earn a spot in the NCAA Division I tournament unveiled Monday afternoon. They will host Northwestern Saturday at 5:00 pm in Pullman.

Eastern Washington, Montana and regular season conference champion Idaho missed out on earning a spot in the dance in the Big Sky tournament over the weekend as Northern Colorado claimed the league championship.

The Bears, however, feature one of only a handful of area players - other than the Cougars - that will be playing in the tournament with Carolyn Cox (Spokane, WA) on the squad. Other players from the region include Kelcie Hedge (Post Falls, ID) with the University of Washington, Stanford's Averie Collins (Bozeman, MT) and the trio of Jackie Bollinger (Wenatchee, WA), Rachel Estopare (Bend, OR) and Hayley Estopare (Bend, OR) with the University of Arizona.

NCAA Tournament Bracket [+]

Here is a round-up of the action last week:

WOMEN #############

BIG SKY CONFERENCE 

Conference Tournament

The lower seeds prevailed on an opening day that saw the weather transition from a progressively heavier rainfall eventually to snowfall of one-inch flakes that significantly impacted the play of the final half of play on the day. Sacramento State used an early goal to take control against Eastern Washington and wrapped up the upset with two goals and an assist from Kayla Collins. Montana used a pair of goals from Ashlee Pedersen (Spokane, WA) to top Weber State in the snow.  INWsn REPORT [+]

Both winners, however, came up short in the semifinals the following day. A goal and two assists from Rebecca Lancia led Northern Colorado in the first contest while Idaho used goals from three different players to build a three-goal lead, holding on to advance to the final despite a late charge from the Grizzlies.  INWsn REPORT [+]

The championship came down to penalties for the fourth time in five years. The host Vandals took the initial lead, but the Bears answered in the second half and the two remained deadlocked through overtime, allowing Northern Colorado to win the title thanks to three saves from Madeline Burdick in the shootout.  INWsn REPORT [+]

Thursday, November 5 - First Round

Sacramento State 3 :: 1 Eastern Washington
Montana 2 :: 0 Weber State

Friday, November 6 - Semifinals

Sacramento State 1 :: 3 Northern Colorado
Montana 2 :: 3 Idaho

Sunday, November 8 - Championship

Northern Colorado (3) 1 :: PK :: 1 (0) Idaho

Standings

Idaho^ 9-0-1... Northern Colorado* 7-2-1... Eastern Washington* 6-2-2... Weber State* 6-4-0... Montana* 5-4-1... Sacramento State* 5-5-0... Northern Arizona 4-4-2... Southern Utah 3-5-2... Portland State 3-7-0... North Dakota 2-7-1... Idaho State 0-10-0  --  ^ Clinched top seed & tournament host, * Clinched tournament berth (6)

PAC-12

Thursday, November 5

Washington State 3 :: 1 Washington 
Kelcie Hedge (Post Falls, ID) put the host Huskies on the board first, volleying a cross in after just 10 minutes, but Kaitlyn Johnson answered quickly for the Cougars, intercepting a clearance and beating the keeper in the 16th minute. Ten minutes later Johnson combined with Sofia Anker-Kofoed to deliver a through ball to Cara Wegner to put the Cougars in front. Goalkeeper Ella Dederick, who made six saves for the Cougars, snatched a cross in the 82nd minute and delivered a lengthy punt to Kelsee Crenshaw, who beat a defender before scoring from 21 yards to lock up the contest.  MORE [+]

Friday, November 6

Oregon 2 :: 1 Oregon State 
Trailing since the 29th, Maryn Beutler (Bend, OR) scored from about 15 yards to even the contest in the 82nd minute en route to the victory.

Arizona State 4 :: 1 Arizona
Down four to their rivals, the Wildcats got their lone goal from Hayley Estopare (Bend, OR) in the 59th minute off a corner kick.

Colorado 0 :: 2 Utah
USC 2 :: 0 UCLA
California 1 :: 1 Stanford

Final Standings

Stanford 10-0-1... USC 9-2-0... Washington State 7-4-0... California 6-4-1... Arizona 6-4-1... Arizona State 5-5-1...  Washington 4-5-1... UCLA 4-6-1... Utah 4-7-0... Oregon 3-8-0... Oregon State 2-9-0... Colorado 1-8-2

WEST COAST CONFERENCE 

Friday, November 6

Pacific 0 :: 2 San Diego

Saturday, November 7

Santa Clara 3 :: OT :: 2 Gonzaga
The 15th-ranked Broncos took the initial lead with a goal in the 19th minute, but senior Heather Johnson highlighted her final game with the equalizer in the 39th minute on a ball from Jodi Ulkekul. Karley Baggerly put the Bulldogs in front in the 74th minute, but Santa Clara pulled even in the 82nd. The lady Zags were seconds away from from an upset result when the visitors tallied with five seconds remaining to grab the victory.  MORE [+]

Pepperdine 0 :: 1 Loyola Marymount
San Francisco 0 :: 1 Portland
Saint Mary's 1 :: 4 BYU

Final Standings

BYU 7-1-1... San Francisco 7-2-0... Loyola Marymount 7-2-0... Santa Clara 6-1-2... Portland 4-5-0... Pepperdine 3-6-0... San Diego 3-6-0... Saint Mary's 2-5-2... Pacific 2-7-0... Gonzaga 1-7-1

MEN #############

WEST COAST CONFERENCE 

Friday, November 6

San Francisco 0 :: 0 San Diego

Sunday, November 8

Saint Mary's 1 :: 0 Gonzaga
Unlike the women's game the day before that went down to the final seconds, the deciding goal on a corner came from the visitors just 67 seconds into the contest for the Bulldog men. Senior Chris Lowrimore went on to make nine saves in his final game and the Zags forced six from the keeper at the other end.  MORE [+]

Santa Clara 2 :: 1 Loyola Marymount
Pacific 1 :: 2 Portland

Standings

San Diego 5-0-1... Santa Clara 4-1-1... San Francisco 4-1-1... Saint Mary's 4-2-0... Loyola Marymount 3-3-0... Gonzaga 1-5-0... Portland 1-5-0... Pacific 0-5-1

Upcoming Games 

Saturday, November 14
Portland @ Saint Mary's 1:00
Loyola Marymount @ San Francisco 6:00
Gonzaga @ Pacific 7:00
San Diego @ Santa Clara 7:00


PAC-12

Friday, November 6

Oregon State 1 :: 4 UCLA  
Down three late in the match, Timmy Mueller (Post Falls, ID) delivered a cross that was finished for the Beavers' lone goal in the 85th minute.

Washington 1 :: 1 San Diego State

Sunday, November 8

Oregon State 3 :: 1 San Diego State
Washington 1 :: 2 UCLA

Standings

Stanford 6-1-2... UCLA 5-3-1... California 4-3-2... Washington 3-3-3... Oregon State 3-5-1... San Diego State 1-7-1

Upcoming Games 

Thursday, November 12
Washington @ Oregon State 2:00
California @ Stanford 6:00
Saturday, November 14
UCLA @ San Diego State 7:00

ADDITIONAL DI NOTES #############

Julia Moravec (Spokane, WA) tallied a goal and assist in the 2-0 Seattle University win over CSU-Bakersfield in the WAC tournament hosted in Bakersfield, but the Redhawks failed to return to the NCAA tournament when they were upset 2-0 in the conference final by second-seeded Utah Valley, whom they beat 1-0 in the season finale a week before in Seattle. Trailing by three to top-seeded Penn State in the Big Ten Conference tournament opener, Kara Marbury (Spokane, WA) scored the lone goal for Illinois in the 77th minute.

-- INWsn -- 

Tuesday 10 November 2015

HS Update - November 10: Gonzaga Prep survives three shootouts to win regionals

The state playoffs kick off Tuesday after a week of regional playoff contests to determine who would advance to the final bracket.

Success came evenly for the Greater Spokane League and Mid-Columbia Conference leagues in the regional 4A and 3A tournaments with three moving on from the MCC and two from the GSL.

Not surprisingly considering they finished first and second ahead of their 4A league foes, Southridge and Kamiakin advanced to the state tournament at the 3A classification.

Southridge blanked Mt Spokane in the regional final 3-0 with Cyd Sanders tallying a goal and assist in the victory. Tiara Valadez recorded her seventh shutout of the campaign.

Kamiakin posted similarly dominant results with a 2-0 win over North Central in which Heather Donais notched a goal and assist.

Her fantastic season continued in the Braves' 3-0 win over Mt Spokane for the second berth from the region, setting up the first and third goals and scoring the second herself, bringing her season tallies to 14 goals and 11 assists thus far. Rachel McClure registered her first two complete game shutouts of the year after sharing time with Grace Wilbur much of the season for Kamiakin, which now boasts 13 shutouts.

At the 4A level, however, it was the GSL that dominated the action. University topped Richland in the opener to move onto the regional semifinals, where Gonzaga Prep advanced with a 3-1 penalty kick tiebreaker decision against the Titans following a 1-1 draw between the two GSL defensive powers.

The Titans fell behind at Richland, but rallied to the lead with goals from Julia Adair and Kelsey Crosby. Richland equalized before the break, but Adair added a second goal from the spot for the win in the 77th.

Adair came up big again against the Bullpups with the opening goal in the 63rd, but Larkin Russell saved Gonzaga Prep from the upset with a 71st minute answer. Adair's three goals in two games doubled her tally for the season while Russell's goal was her ninth.

In the other semifinal MCC top seed Chiawana edged Ferris 2-1. Bria Bowton, one of the GSL's top scorers, put the Saxons on the board eight minutes in with her ninth of the season, but Summer Yates gave the MCC champs the late win with goals in the 68th and 78th, giving her 17 goals this season.

In the regional final, it was a case of deja vu for Gonzaga Prep as the match went scoreless and they needed penalties to decide the outcome for the third time in four playoff matches. Penalties were not nearly enough either as they two sides needed 10 rounds to settle things, the Bullpups claiming the title 8-7. The scoreless draw gave Gonzaga Prep's Zoe Boleneus her fourth clean sheet of the year while it was the sixth for Chiawana's Cottrell.

The consolation match with a third berth up for grabs pitted GSL foes against one another yet again and Ferris made their previous 2-1 district playoff win stand up with a 2-0 victory to advance to state. University had won the regular season contest 2-1. Bria Bowton and Sydney Clements each registered a goal and assist in the second half for the regional win.



Meanwhile in the 4A playoffs out of the Columbia Basin Big Nine things continued to be a bit interesting. Having previously eliminated fourth-seeded Moses Lake, fifth-seeded Davis knocked third-seeded Eastmont out of the postseason with a 2-1 victory before their run came to an end in the battle for the second state berth against second-seeded Wenatchee, which had been handily beaten 5-0 in the regional final by West Valley.

The Rams claimed the regional title with two goals from Taylor Karnes with significant assistance from Lauryn Peters' goal and assist and a pair of assists from Caitlin Quaempts on the day. Quaempts, which leads the league in goals (15) bumped her league-leading assist tally to 11. Teammate Kendra Hanses moved within one goal of her, however, in the scoring race with her 14th of the year.

Things were a lot more simple in the 1A class where the seeding played out largely as expected. Having finished as part of a three-way tie for second in the Northeast A League, it was no surprise really that third-seeded Freeman advanced against second-seeded Lakeside, but the two battled to a 1-1 stalemate that needed penalties to determine the outcome. Freeman took the tiebreaker 4-1 to set up a showdown with Deer Park, which squeaked by Riverside, the other team in the three-way tie, with a 1-0 decision in the semifinal on a goal from Jessie Thomas as league-leading scorer Riley Martinson was shutout for only the second time this season. Thomas played a key role again in the district final, tallying the opening goal in the second half and setting up Martinson for the other.



The big surprise in the lower classifications was the upset of West Valley by Clarkston in the second round of the Great Northern League's district playoff. Their regular season meetings were close, but second-seeded West Valley had swept all three (one a shootout victory) prior to losing 1-0 to the Bantams in the playoffs. Clarkston gave East Valley a bit of a scare as well, keeping things scoreless with the Knights until Shannon Frucci struck for the winner in the 67th.

Both moved on to face the third and fourth seeds out of the Central Washington Athletic Conference, where the top two (Ellensburg & Prosser, respectively) from that district playoff automatically advanced to the state tournament. The GNL duo swept the regional play-in contests to advance to the state tournament, where they will face the top two from the CWAC in the first round.

The Knights dominated fourth-seed Ephrata, the fifth-place finishers in the CWAC, with a 5-0 drubbing. Skylar Bastin pushed her GNL-leading goal total to 11 with a pair of tallies in the second half. Chloe Gellhaus also played a big role with the opening strike and an assist and Kari Bromley registered her eighth shutout. Clarkston moved on with Taylen Wohl and Makinzie Packwood each registering a goal and assist in the first half en route to a 2-1 victory over East Valley of Yakima.



STATE TOURNAMENT BRACKETS 


STATE TOURNAMENT MATCHES

Tuesday, November 10
4A - Wenatchee @ Bellarmine Prep 7:00
4A - Todd Beamer @ Gonzaga Prep 7:00
4A - Ferris @ Chiawana 5:00 
3A - Holy Names @ Kamiakin 5:00 
3A - Auburn Riverside @ Southridge 5:00
1A - Naches Valley @ Deer Park 5:00 
1A - Freeman @ Cascade 5:30  
Wednesday, November 11
4A - Puyallup @ West Valley (Yakima)  6:00
2A - Prosser @ East Valley 5:00 
2A - Clarkston @ Ellensburg 1:30

If you have any updates for stats (particularly assists that go unrecorded for road games), please drop INWsn a note at snaeditor-at-gmail.com.  INWsn is currently missing scoring (and GK) information for 10.23 Rogers @ LC, 10/15 Moses Lake @ Eastmont, 10/13 Eastmont @ Eisenhower, 10/3 Pasco @ Walla Walla and 9.24 Medical Lake @ Newport games.

STATISTICAL LEADERS - SPOKANE AREA LEAGUES 




STAT LEADERS - CENTRAL / SOUTHERN AREA LEAGUES 



-- INWsn --