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The Chronicle - Centralia
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Prep boys soccer: Thunderbirds stave off Tigers to reach state tourney
TUMWATER – Style points don’t exist in the playoffs. And that rings true for the Tumwater High School boys soccer team. When their backs have been against the wall, they’ve responded to the challenge. “I love an exciting game, but for the playoffs, I’d prefer not to,” attacker Dylan Stevens said. “A win is a win.” In an all-Evergreen Conference matchup in a Class 2A District 4 elimination contest, the Thunderbirds held on at the end and triumphed over Centralia 3-2 on Thursday night at Tumwater District Stadium to return to the state tournament for the second straight season. Brackets for the tourney are expected to be released before next week. The opening round kicks off on Tuesday. “They weathered the storm,” Tumwater head coach John Hayes said. “I’m proud of the boys.” It has been a postseason of survival for the Thunderbirds. They needed to fend off Hockinson in the quarterfinals despite building a three-goal lead with under 10 minutes left in regulation. They were blasted by defending state champion Columbia River 8-0 in the semis. And they nearly blew another three-goal cushion at home versus the Tigers. Yet Tumwater (10-8-1) rose up and its back line plus goalie Davyn McGilvrey didn’t wilt under the pressure once again. “It was a team effort, to be honest,” McGilvrey said. “It really was the mids, forwards and defense that made my job easy. We all come from different backgrounds, but throughout the year, we decided to trust each other more.” Centralia broke the ice on a free kick goal from Alan Vasquez in the 48th minute. That kickstarted a stretch where its total shots and chances started to increase. The Tigers delivered plenty of long balls to their forwards and ran the sets through the center midfielders. Time and time again they were knocking on the door, ending up with 19 total shots. “At some points, I thought we were the better team,” their head coach Noel Vasquez said. “We’re just a resilient (team).” Freshman Damian Corona was fouled inside the box, awarded a penalty kick and fired it in the bottom corner to make it a one-goal deficit in the 67th minute. Centralia (11-8) finished with eight corner kicks, the final one a header that sailed just over the crossbar in stoppage time. Once the final whistle sounded, Tumwater celebrated and the Tigers fell face down on the turf. “We’ve been kind of a mix, some days we do it excellently and some days we've given up some we shouldn't,” Hayes said of defending corners. “We are tall and they’re confident. That is a strength.” Hayes wanted to challenge the Thunderbirds in the non-league, setting up showdowns against 3A and 4A programs. A group that returned just two starters was being thrown into the fire early. Even with a close to .500 record, Tumwater has been battle tested. “Those are playoff caliber teams and it is just as hard in 2A,” Stevens said. “I think 2A is the hardest league. We got to work on locking the game down in the final minutes.” Gavin Cuoio lit up the scoreboard with a bending free kick in the eighth minute for the T-Birds. After the Tigers had three chances at an equalizer in the closing minutes of the first half, Stevens buried a free kick goal in stoppage time to double the lead. Malachi Vuong secured a rebound shot goal in the 45th minute. “We work on set pieces a lot,” Hayes said. “It gives us an opportunity and that’s all we ask.” McGilvrey posted a first half shutout donning a red practice jersey over his black game jersey. He stated afterwards he may bring it back for the state tournament. Regardless of the matchup, Tumwater players and coaches are aiming for a complete game which has been absent to this point in May. “Maybe this is a good luck charm,” McGilvrey added. “Obviously, (we) have something to prove.” Centralia will be revamped next spring with the loss of 12 seniors, but stout keeper Alejandro Arevalo is expected to anchor the 2025 unit. Coach Vasquez feels the building blocks that were set this spring will push the program forward. Plus, there was strong community support in the stands on Thursday. “I let them know how proud I am of them,” Vasquez said. “This is just the beginning of something special we’re building in ‘C’ Town. The seniors fought for us and the younger guys got to taste it.” |
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Bearcats top Hawks in penalty shootout to clinch state berth
Josh Madrigal hadn’t been in net for either of the Bearcat’s first three shootouts of the season. He had always deferred to Cayden Page, the other W.F. West keeper that he’s split time with over the course of the season, saying that he always had all the confidence in the world in him. On Thursday, though, in the biggest game of the season, it was Madrigal coming through with two of the biggest saves in program history. “It was my time to shine today,” Madrigal said with a smile. “I’m at a loss for words … It’s just a lot to take in.” Madrigal’s second save preceded Rafael Mendez’s game-winning conversion, one that lifted W.F. West to a 1-0 win (5-4 in PKs) over Hockinson and put them into the state tournament for the third time in school history. “They stuck together as a team really well through that game,” W.F. West coach Allen Anderson said. “I’m really excited for the boys to have this opportunity.” It’s the fourth time the Bearcats have gone to a shootout this season, and they connected on all but one of their shots in each shootout. Anderson said that the coaching staff has been preparing for penalty kicks since Day 1, as they’ve ended each and every practice with a session of PKs. That repetition not only kept Madrigal calm in net, but it helped each Bearcat who made the long walk to the spot stay composed under pressure. “My team has been in this situation before,” Mendez said. “So it just felt like we were at home.” As it has been all season, W.F. West’s defense was its calling card on Thursday, as the Bearcats were able to shut out a Hockinson offense that had averaged nearly three goals per game heading into the matchup. It’s the tenth time that the Bearcats have shut out their opponent this season, which breaks the school record they tied in their district quarterfinal win over Hudson’s Bay. “I don’t think anybody expected us to have this great of a defensive scheme,” Anderson said. While Madrigal and Mendez were the heroes in the shootout, it was a big defensive play in the final minutes that was the main reason the game got to that point. With less than three minutes left in regulation, the ball snuck behind Madrigal in a crowded box, and a Hockinson attacker was bearing down to tap in what likely would have stood as the game-winning goal. Instead, freshman Gabriel Burger scampered to his right and just got enough to get the ball out of play. W.F. West cleared the ensuing corner kick, and the referee blew the whistle to end regulation. Hockinson didn’t put another shot on net. “We knew it was going to take a good team defensive effort,” Anderson said. “And that’s exactly what they did.” The Bearcats (11-5-1) will appear in the state tournament for the second time in three years. Anderson was the coach two years ago, and he was on the team in 1998, the other time that W.F. West has made the state tournament in school history. “That’s pretty cool,” Anderson admitted. The win also gets the Bearcats back on the right track heading into state, as they had won just three of their previous eight games. Despite the tough stretch of play, their confidence has never wavered, and now, it’s at an all-time high. “This team has been through lots of hardships,” Madrigal said. “We’ve had some downs, but we know how to bring ourselves back up … It’s just the next big step. It’s time to win state.” “I feel we were the most underrated team this whole season, and we just came out on top,” Mendez said. “I’m really proud of these guys.” |
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Mountaineers ride sizzling bats to blowout win over Ducks
The Rainier High School softball team is heating up as the regular season comes to a close and hopes of a deep postseason run grow stronger. In their senior day game and final regular season contest, the Mountaineers cruised past Toutle Lake, 15-5, in six innings on Thursday, May 9, to win their third straight game. Head coach Katie Qualls’ team responded after a three-game skid in which they were outscored 39-5 and put 43 runs on the board in their final three games. The Mountaineers quickly got to work against the Ducks as Brooklynn Swenson, who was recently named a WIAA Athlete of the Week, doubled to advance Olivia Earsley to third before Keira Anderson drove them both in with a double in the first inning. After a Toutle Lake triple that scored on an infield error cut the lead to 2-1 in the second inning, the Mountaineers answered with four runs in the frame, including RBI doubles by Swenson, Anderson and Ryleigh Cruse as well as an RBI single by Gracie Lantz. More infield errors in the third inning helped Toutle Lake inch closer, 6-3. By the third, the Ducks had two batters reach home plate due to Rainier’s defensive mistakes. “We have just really been impressing upon them that if you’re still going to make mistakes in the field, we have just gotta keep hitting,” Qualls said. “We have to be an offensive powerhouse, and we have.” Rainier padded its lead after Raychel Hansen broke out of her 3-for-20 slump with an RBI double to score Earsley. After Lantz was injured sliding to second base in the second inning, she returned and drove in her second RBI of the game in the fourth to make it 8-3. “We have expected better from her because we know she has it in her, and we kept telling her to make those little adjustments when she’s up there,” Qualls said of Lantz. “I told her today to have fun and find some grass, and she really did. She really powered through.” Toutle Lake scored a run in the fifth, but each time the Ducks crept closer, the Mountaineers increased their lead. Anderson cranked a two-run home run to left field to give Rainier a 10-4 lead and to give her five RBIs for the day. In the sixth, the Mountaineers emphatically responded to the Ducks’ fifth run with five more tallies to the scoreboard. Earsley scored for the third time after Hansen doubled her home, and Swenson and Cruse each drove in a pair of runs. All five of the Mountaineers’ sixth-inning runs came with two outs. “They just kept chipping away, especially with two outs. No matter who it was, everybody showed up today,” Qualls said. Swenson, Qualls’ daughter, fueled the Mountaineers offensive attack once again with four hits, three RBIs and four runs. Swenson was one of six Mountaineers to record multiple hits and one of five to drive in multiple runs. Over Rainier’s three-game winning streak, the junior is batting 10-of-14 at the plate with 14 RBIs, three home runs and two doubles. After one of her four hits on Thursday, the Ducks catcher exclaimed, “She just hits everything!” “She had a really good year last year, but I think she’s just more determined this year. She’s really relaxed. She has only struck out twice this year and only had four last year,” Qualls said. “She’s smart up there and that’s what makes her dangerous.” The Mountaineers (11-8, 6-3 Central 2B League) were scheduled to finish the regular season with a doubleheader against Winlock on Friday, May 10, but the Cardinals forfeited both games. Due to this schedule change, Thursday’s win over Toutle Lake ended up being the final home game for Rainier’s seniors: Earsley, Hansen and Rooh Osborne. The team honored its three seniors with a speech from their head coach and balloons. “Olivia is a team leader. She has been even before I coached. She really brings confidence, knowledge and competitiveness to the team,” Qualls said. “Raychel, if you’re listening on the field, she’s always talking. She communicates so well with everyone, and she’s also a great leader. Her smile and enthusiasm are a bonus to the team. Rooh doesn’t have the experience that the other girls do, but you would never tell by the way she’s always cheering her team on. She is the biggest advocate and cheerleader for this team. They’re all going to be missed a lot.” Rainier will wait for its postseason fate but is looking at a top four seed in the district tournament, which would begin with a loser-out game on Monday. |
Washington State News
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MLB roundup: Manuel Margot drives in 5 as Twins top M's
(Photo credit: Matt Krohn-USA TODAY Sports)
Manuel Margot doubled and matched a career high with five RBIs as the Minnesota Twins cruised to an 11-1 win over the Seattle Mariners on Thursday in Minneapolis.
Max Kepler and Ryan Jeffers homered and drove in two runs apiece for Minnesota, which won three of four games in the series. Carlos Santana and Edouard Julien each drove in one run.
Twins starter Pablo Lopez (4-2) li
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Tigers stumble home for series against Astros
(Photo credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports)
The Tigers left Detroit last week with four consecutive series victories to their credit.
They return home reeling from a poor trip in which they dropped five of six games.
The Tigers will try to reverse that trend during a six-game homestand that begins on Friday night against the strugglingHouston Astros.
Detroit scored just seven runs during a four-game losing streak that w
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