Mt. Spokane loses in State 3A quarterfinals

SAMMAMISH, Wash. – KK Standish and Quinn Phillips scored less than 2 minutes apart early in the second half Saturday as the Eastside Catholic Crusaders kept making history with a 3-1 triumph over Mt. Spokane in the State 3A quarterfinals at Acosta Field.

Eastside Catholic (12-6-5), which hadn’t won a state playoff game before this season, advances to meet the winner of Everett-Liberty (Issaquah) at 4 p.m. Friday in a semifinal at Puyallup’s Sparks Stadium.

Standish, a junior forward, scored her 10th goal of the season on a bad defensive clearance, cracking home a 17-yard shot in the 42nd minute for a 2-0 lead.

Junior defender Quinn Phillips converted a penalty kick in the 44th minute for a 3-0 lead after Morgan McKenzie was fouled in the penalty area.

“There were two kind of funky goals for them that determined an Elite Eight game,” Mt. Spokane coach Ryan Campanella said.

The Wildcats (11-8) averted the shutout in the 51st minute when captain Alyssa Lloyd found the net on a 10-yard left-foot swing after a pass from Sierra Bezdicek.

Mt. Spokane’s best first-half scoring chance came in the 18th minute from Ashlee Pedersen. The Wildcats’ sophomore midfielder broke free for a 1-on-1 shot attempt, but skidded it just outside the left post from 18 yards out.

The Wildcats, who have made four appearances at state, had won just one state game prior, a 2-0 win over Auburn Riverside in the first round of 2007.

“We’ve been in the top eight before, but it’s definitely not the thing we do every season,” Campanella said. “The girls have played their hearts out all season and I’m so proud of what we’ve done this season.”

The Wildcats had won four of their last five games prior to the season-ending loss.