The Onalaska girls soccer team found itself in a late hole a long ways from home but got to work in the second half, scoring two goals in the final 20 minutes to beat No. 8 Tonasket 3-2 in Wenatchee.
“One of the most amazing things about this team is their willingness to fight all the way to the end,” Onalaska coach Christopher Van Clifford said. “They don’t buckle or say, ‘That’s fine, we’ll go to overtime.’ It was fantastic to put it together right at the end like that.”
Randi Haight scored the game-winner in stoppage time for the Loggers, after Kaiyah Sandridge broke free into the penalty area and laid the ball off for the sophomore just outside the 6-yard box for the easy shot.
Sandridge equalized things for Onalaska in the 63rd minute, off an assist from Jules Auman.
“Kaiyah killed it today,” Van Clifford said. “She worked really hard. She got pretty beat up right there, but she didn’t really notice it happening. She kept going and going and going, pure adrenaline.”
The Loggers took an early lead thanks to Jaycee Talley, who rocketed a shot from just outside the area into the top corner in the sixth minute, after a bit of a scrum from a throw-in.
The Tigers — designated the hosts despite being nearly 120 miles from home — came back in the 30th minute on a penalty kick. Then, four minutes out of halftime, they took the lead.
The Onalaska defense held firm the rest of the way, though, setting the Loggers up for their comeback.
It’s a win that Van Clifford said had its roots in the rugged Central 2B League schedule Onalaska has had to navigate, citing the Loggers’ 2-1 win over Adna in the regular season and their 1-0 victory on a 70th-minute goal over Napavine.
“We’ve got a little experience with that, playing in tight games,” Van Clifford said.
Now, the Loggers have bought themselves one more game, and a chance to spring a huge upset. Onalaska will stay on this side of the mountains and head north to South Kitsap High School to take on No. 1 Crosspoint. The Warriors are 16-0, including wins over Napavine and Tenino.
“I think we’ll just come out fighting and see what happens,” Van Clifford said. “I don’t think the girls are going to give up … I don’t think it’s an automatic win for Crosspoint.”
