Blazers Drop Crucial League Match to Tacoma

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Centralia College came out firing then fell flat-footed in the second half to take a 2-1 loss to visiting Tacoma Community College in a Northwest Athletic Conference West Region match with playoff implications.

A win would have put the Blazers in sole possession of second place in the West Region. Now, the Blazers need to win two of their last three games to secure a playoff spot.

“We went from playing good in the first half to not,” Centralia College coach Clarence Gunderson said. “We lacked energy and our players just didn’t show guts. We went away from the game plan and tried to play kickball.”



The Blazers fell behind 1-0 just four minutes into the game after a goal by Titans’ Lauren Glazebrook. The Blazers answered back when Erin Stanfill knocked in the equalizer in the 32nd minute. After a long scoring drought, the Blazers surrendered another goal in Glazebrook in the 79th minute to take a 2-1 defeat.

“It’s tough, for sure,” Gunderson said. “We were playoff hunting. We’ve got to be a better team, set the tempo of the game, be more aggressive and want it more.”

The Blazers (4-3-3, 3-3-3 league) now head to Bellevue for a 4 p.m. matchup on Saturday.