It was a game that featured speed on speed, set pieces galore and after just one goal in the first half, six found the back of the net in the final 40 minutes on Thursday night.
Cascade Christian and Centralia’s boys soccer programs went toe-to-toe in a thrilling non-league contest that had a little bit of everything. Even an ending that put most of the 22 players on the field to a slight stop.
Except for Ezekiel Gopaul.
The Cougars forward took advantage of a controversial no-call on their counter-attack in the 80th minute, poking his shot past the outstretched hands of Centralia keeper Alex Castro to cap a wild 4-3 verdict at Tiger Stadium.
“Props to them, they are a really well put together team,” Tigers head coach Noel Vazquez said. “I think for us, it is about making the right adjustments to give ourselves a better chance and that depends on the quality of officials.”
Vazquez was far from pleased with the finale.
Gabriel Cruz appeared to be fouled and was on the turf for the entirety of the Cascade Christian attack. The center referee kept play going and did not call an advantage. Vazquez was shown a yellow card after arguing with the assistant referee and center ref one minute into stoppage time.
The conversation didn’t stop there. The two refs, Vazquez and a Centralia assistant talked for roughly five minutes after the handshake line.
“A third defender came out of nowhere and you could hear the click of him hitting (Gabriel) in the shin. The explanation I got was he didn’t see a foul,” Vazquez said. “We’ve gotten one call that means something from one official and I got a different call that means something from another official. The explanation I got is that I’m not going to get the same consistency.
“We have a very clear foul here that could have gone the other way. I’m thankful to have officials in the first place, but I would love to have a little more consistency.”
Centralia (2-2) grabbed the lead with two goals in the span of two minutes, erasing a 2-1 deficit. Cruz received a long ball from the other side of the pitch, made one move by his defender and fired his match-tying shot in the 71st minute.
Two corner kicks and a failed clearance by the Cougars later, forward Damian Corona made a bottom-right corner shot in the 73rd minute to give the Tigers the slim lead.
Cruz and Corona have been the early goal-scorers for Centralia through four matches.
“We’re pretty dynamic,” Vazquez said. “They are not going to be the only two guys we’re going to depend on. I think it is going to be a season of giving; we’re gonna win because we play as one.”
It took just three minutes and a perfect 35-yard free kick from Cascade Christian’s Billy Huff just over Castro to knot the game at 3-3. Gopaul’s final goal celebration was capped with a backflip near the stands.
The Cougars were the No. 2 seed in the Class 1A state tournament a year ago and went 16-2. Centralia didn’t wilt against them.
“I believe we have a really good developmental program and we’ve been eyeing out this group of juniors,” Vazquez said. “We feel very confident that they are going to come in and compete. I want us to learn. There are no preseason championships, only league, district and state titles.”
Plenty of chances were there for the Tigers in the first half. They had a pair of runs that didn’t link up and a few shots within the 18-yard box were stopped. Their free kicks and four total corner kicks saw decent looks.
Cruz put Centralia on the board in the 43rd minute, netting a penalty kick goal for the brief equalizer. It went with a two-goalie system in Castro, their JV keeper, and defender Romario Meija – who played the entire first half.
Senior Kycen Donahue injured his wrist in the win versus R.A. Long and will be out six weeks, per Vazquez.
“We’re gonna go back to the white board and figure it out,” Vazquez said.
Two straight wins followed by two straight losses for the Tigers, but Vazquez still feels good about his group. It’s a junior-heavy roster with just seven seniors and a freshman starter in Andres Cruz. They’ll take on Rogers out of Puyallup on Saturday in their penultimate non-league game.
EvCo play for Centralia begins on Tuesday versus Black Hills.
“The boys know they are good enough to win games,” Vazquez said. “You want them to be hungry, that grind to be out there. Regardless of the results, we’re scoring goals and once we figure things out, we’re gonna be a pretty scary team.”
