Prep Boys Soccer: Tumwater Slips Past Bearcats in Final Minutes

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A matchup between the last two undefeated teams in the Evergreen 2A Conference boys soccer standings lived up to its billing Tuesday night, with Tumwater scoring twice in stoppage time to escape Chehalis with a 3-2 win over W.F. West.

“It was definitely a great way for our guys to see that we can compete with the best teams,” W.F. West coach Allen Anderson said. “We’ve just got to make sure we stay focused for the full 80 minutes. It’s just unfortunate that we weren’t able to pull out the win tonight.”

Carlos Hernandez scored on a penalty kick in the fifth minute for W.F. West, but Tumwater countered a minute later and the game went into halftime tied. 

Hernandez then assisted Elvis Leal on a free kick goal in the 75th minute, but the Thunderbirds converted twice in stoppage time to tie the game and then pull ahead before the final horn.

“We played really great for 78 minutes,” Anderson said, noting that the Bearcats’ goals were the first Tumwater had allowed this season. “The boys did a really great job. I know we out-shot them on the night, and we had some pretty good opportunities on them. We were keeping pressure on them.”

Cameron Kunz, at midfield, played well, Anderson noted, and Jairo Lima Perez played well defensively.

W.F. West (3-1-1) plays a non-league game at Capital on Thursday.

Tigers Can’t Convert

Centralia blasted 26 shots on goal but were able to connect on only one of them in a 2-1 loss to Black Hills Tuesday on the road.

“Not a complete-game performance for us,” Centralia coach Henry Gallanger said. “We burned too much energy in the first half and, performance-wise, we were not the same in the second half.”

Tigers’ Leo Perez scored the Tigers’ lone goal on a corner kick from Fernando Lopez in stoppage time in the first half. Black Hills scored its goals in the 35th minute and later in the second half.

Gallanger praised his front line made up of freshmen and sophomore, as well as his back line.



“I was happy with the front line’s performance, and the back line had a pretty decent effort tonight,” Gallanger said. “I was also happy with Franklin Pena, who came off the bench and did a good job being a solid senior leader.”

The Tigers fall to 0-5 overall and head to Shelton on Friday.

1A Soccer

Beavers Shut Out by Eagles

Elma used a quick-scoring goal in the first 30 seconds of the match to gain momentum and hand Tenino a 2-0 loss in Tenino Tuesday.

The Eagles scored their second goal in the 30th minute off a penalty kick following a Beavers’ handball in the box. Tenino keeper Alex Reichelderfer actually got a hand on the PK but was unable to keep it out of the goal. He finished with eight saves on the night.

“Alex had a strong game in goal,” said Tenino coach Kevin Schultz, who also praised William Tennehill for his defensive performance.

Despite the loss, the Beavers have been improving every match this season and were on a three-match win streak before Tuesday’s loss. They lost 7-0 to Elma in their season opener back on March 24.

“It was a spirited effort from the guys, especially down the stretch,” Schultz said. “It continues to build our confidence. I can see it in my players’ eyes. To see that look makes me hopeful.”

The Beavers’ JV team also played their first 80-minute match in recent memory, maybe ever; a sign of a burgeoning program, Schultz said.

Tenino (3-3) heads to Forks for a 2 p.m. match on Saturday.