Thursday, March 28, 2024

Soccer season ends with disappointing loss to Brewster

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There were high hopes for the Cascade boys’ soccer team this season, after going undefeated right up to the state final four last year. Most of the guys were back, but like in all sports, it was hard to recapture that magic.
Cascade was forced to take the tougher road to state because they finished second to Chelan in the Caribou Trail League. On May 8, they played in the District semifinals at Brewster, a team they had beaten 4-1 earlier in the season.
Head Coach Pete Spiegel knew this game was going to be different since it was a playoff game with the loser going home.
“We often have played our best soccer in the opening minutes when we are freshest. This was not the case. We were a little sluggish. Then, in the eighth minute, one of our players mishandled a bouncing ball at our 18. A Brewster player took the ball and scored an easy goal. This goal got us playing harder as we fought to even the score,” Spiegel said.
The Kodiaks had chances but were unable to score as the half ended. The second half was back and forth until the 60th minute, when a long ball was sent in the goalie box. A Cascade player thought the goalie was going to take the ball, while the Cascade goalie thought the defender would play the ball.
Neither played the ball, so the Bears took advantage with another score to make it 2-0 in favor of Brewster. Feeling pressure, Cascade started moving defenders up into the attacking third to create more chances.
At 70 minutes, Arturo Avila hit a solid corner onto the head of Julian Alvarez, who scored.
“This gave us hope and desire. Then, with two minutes left in the game, Jose Valdez set up Arturo Avila to knot the score at 2-2. The game went into overtime. In the first five minutes of overtime, we had better looks, but were unable to score. The second overtime was coming to an end,” Spiegel said.
The coaches were determining who should take the penalty kicks, but Brewster had other plans, sending a long ball into the Kodiak fullbacks. The ball was misplayed and fell to the feet of Brewster’s best player from 45-yards out. He was able to outrace the defenders and beat the keeper before the final whistle on the second overtime.
Cascade lost 3-2 in overtime. Season over.
“After fighting back, this was a tough game to lose. However, we never gave up and always believed that we were going to win. We again, had lots of good scoring chances, but were only able to connect on two. On the defensive side of the ball, we made too many costly mistakes,” Spiegel said.
The Kodiaks finished the season 13-5, second place in league. Had they beaten Brewster, they would have made it back to state.
“Though we played well in stretches, we need to be more consistent. We often played the ball directly - when we could have built up play more. Also, sometimes you need a little luck. The ball didn’t fall our way this year. For example, our last three losses were in overtime. We are very disappointed not to be playing at state, especially after our success last year,” he said.
Spiegel credits the outstanding play of goalie Jose Mendoza, who kept them in so many games. His penalty kick versus Manson stands out. Raul Mata was the player who linked the defense to the offense, so much of the play went through him.
“Arturo Avila was again our top scorer. He scored 15 goals, almost a goal a game. Even when he wasn’t scoring goals, he was a force to be reckoned with. Daniel Sandoval was our most versatile player. We played him at most positions on the field and he responded well. His improved play from last year was impressive. Finally, seven of our starters missed games this year due to injuries, trips, or disciplinary reasons,” Spiegel said.
The coach feels the future is bright.
“We will be losing only one senior from our varsity team. However, he will be the most difficult player we have to replace, our goalie, Jose Mendoza. Jose proved again this year that he deserves to be in the discussion for being the best goalie that Cascade has ever had. He will be missed. However, everyone else will be returning and we expect that there will be a number of freshmen who will be able to help our squad,” he said.
Ian Dunn can be reached at 548-5286 or editor@leavenworthecho.com.
 

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