The Federal Way Eagles just keep finding ways to win soccer games.
The Eagles continued their impressive postseason run Tuesday night with a 3-2 victory over the Snohomish Panthers in the opening round of the 16-team Class 4A Boys Soccer Tournament at Federal Way Memorial Stadium.
This time, the Eagles used a late goal from sophomore Colin Kim to win their fifth loser-out game in a row. Federal Way (11-5-3) was forced to win their final two South Puget Sound League North Division games to secure the last playoff berth. The Eagles have since won three-straight postseason games.
“We are still alive,” Eagle head coach Jason Baumgardt said with a smile. “We live for another day. We were just fighting and scrapping to even get into the playoffs.”
The Eagles will see a familiar opponent Saturday in the Class 4A state quarterfinals. Federal Way will take on the Todd Beamer Titans at 1:30 p.m. at Federal Way Memorial Stadium with a berth into the Final Four on the line.
This will be the second time, the two district teams have met in the state quarterfinals. In 2007, Federal Way shut out the Titans, 4-0, on their way to finishing second.
Kim’s goal in the 76th minute broke a 2-2 tie when he pushed in the ball with his left foot directly in front of the goal. The game-winner was set up by a perfect free kick from senior defender Kodey Eley from midfield. The ball bounced off a Snohomish (13-6-1) defender’s head and onto Kim’s foot. It was the sophomore’s second score of the season.
“We didn’t play very good at all tonight,” Baumgardt said. “I don’t know if we were nervous about playing in state or something. /but we didn’t play the way we’ve been playing. But hat’s off to (Snohomish).”
Federal Way got on the scoreboard first when senior Brad Lewis scored in the 16th minute on a rebound after Snohomish goalkeeper Cody Melander couldn’t control a shot.
The score remained 1-0 until the Panthers’ Spencer Helfrich tied the game up six minutes into the second half after a long throw-in in front of the goal.
Eagle senior Kelyn Rowe and Snohomish senior Brendon Gundry then exchanged goals within a minute of each other to keep the game tied at 2-2. Rowe’s goal was the 27th of the season for the UCLA commit.
“I really didn’t know that much about Snohomish coming in,” Rowe said. “But I didn’t expect that many goals to be scored.”
Rowe last suited for Federal Way during the team’s 2007 run to the state title game. During the last two high school seasons, Rowe played with the Crossfire Premier Soccer Club in an elite-level, national league during the spring season.
“This year has been everything I thought it was going to be and more,” Rowe said. “It’s been all fun. That’s what the game is all about.”
Last year, the Eagles finished 2-11-3 overall with pretty much the same team besides Rowe and Eley, who also played with Crossfire.
“The guys just have that confidence of those two superior players behind them,” Baumgardt said. “That’s the difference this year.”
Beamer 3, Evergreen 2: Ian Lange proved to be the hero Tuesday night at McKenzie Stadium in Vancouver in the opening round of the Class 4A State Boys Soccer Tournament Tuesday night.
The Titan sophomore snuck a header just inside the goalpost for the game-winner to give Beamer a 3-2 victory over the Evergreen Plainsmen in the 70th minute. Evergreen, the champs of the Greater St. Helen’s League, had several opportunities to tie the game during the final 10 minutes.
Beamer (14-2-3) will be back home Saturday when they take on the Federal Way Eagles at 1:30 p.m. at Federal Way Memorial Stadium with a trip to the state semifinals on the line.
The Plainsmen struck first Tuesday night when Septi Danciu laid the ball off to Josh York, who found the back of the net from just inside the penalty box.
Beamer finally broke through in the 36th minute, tying the game when Austin Sweeney found Troy Peterson on a corner kick. Peterson’s goal squirted by numerous Evergreen defenders.
The Plainsmen (16-2-0) took the lead back, 2-1, in the final minute of the opening half when Danciu converted a penalty kick.
Beamer tied the game back up in the 58th minute when Ugo Okoli found Peterson for his second goal of the game. And in the 70th minute, Lange tallied the game-winner on a corner kick from Sweeney, who finished with two assists.
This will be Beamer’s second trip into the state quarterfinals. In 2007, the Titans were beaten 4-0 by Federal Way. A year later, Beamer won an epic quarterfinal game over Shorwood, 15-14, in a penalty kick shootout.
Marysville-Pilchuck 4, Jefferson 3 (shootout): Despite outplaying the Tomahawks all night long, the Raiders’ season came to an end Tuesday night at Federal Way Memorial Stadium in the first round of the Class 4A boys soccer tournament.
Marysville-Pilchuck’s Jesus Valenzuela banged in a goal with just 3:01 remaining in regulation to tie the score and keep the Tomahawks’ hopes of playing in the state quarterfinals for the second year in a row.
Valenzuela’s goal forced a pair of two five-minute overtime periods and eventually into a penalty-kick shootout.
It was during the shootout that the South Puget Sound League champion Raiders had some trouble. Jefferson (13-5-1) missed the mark on three of their four attempts, while the Tomahawks got three of their four into the back of the net.
The shootout started with Marysville’s Kier Torkorla and TJ’s Casey Kim exchanging goals. But the Raiders missed their next three attempts against goalkeeper Kyle Bluhm. Jimmy Oganga banged one of the right post, Chase Hanson sent a shot far right and Tyler Manthie ended the match by sending his PK over the top of the goal.
Jefferson jumped out early when a Tomahawk defender was called for a handball inside the penalty box less than 10 minutes into the game. Hanson, an All-SPSL midfielder, calmly banged in the penalty kick to give the Raiders a quick 1-0 lead.
But the lead wouldn’t last long, thanks to a pair of ultra-quick goals from the Tomahawks.
Marysville-Pilchuck tied the game on an own goal by TJ with 29:25 left in the first half. A Raider defender accidently knocked the ball into the net on a Tomahawk crossing pass. Brady Ballew, a Seattle University signee, followed 33 seconds later by dribbling 70 yards through the Raider defense to beat TJ goalkeeper Adam Duke, giving Marysville an improbable 2-1 lead.
Jefferson eventually tied the game at 2-2 with 22:16 remaining when Oganga was credited with a goal after a Hanson throw in bounced around in front of Bluhm.
The score remained tied until nearly midway through the second half when Hanson, who controlled possession of the ball in the middle of the field all game, sent another perfect pass down the right flank to Oganga. The TJ junior forward blasted the ball into the left corner of the goal for his second score of the night to give the Raiders a 3-2 advantage.
Jefferson had numerous other solid scoring chances during the game, but had trouble finishing.
The Tomahawks (12-4-1) will face top-ranked Stadium Saturday with a berth into the state semifinals on the line.