Shadow Gain Momentum With Easy Win Spokane Has Two Weeks To Prepare As Hosts Of National Tournament

Call it a confidence builder, momentum booster or call it a blowout.

It was all three for the Spokane Shadow as they closed out their USL Premier League regular season, breezing past the Yakima Reds 4-0 Saturday night at Albi Stadium.

“You’re playing at home, your pride’s at stake and it was a win,” said Shadow coach Sean Bushey, whose team improved to 17-8, 10-6 in the Northwest Division.

The Shadow, winners of the last five out of six matches, will have the next two weeks to prepare for the USL national championship. Spokane plays host at the Aug. 14-15 tournament and now must await the outcomes of the Western, Central and Eastern conferences playoffs.

One factor for certain is the competition drastically will pick up as the four teams battle for the national title. Saturday night, the Reds (6-9) arrived with just 11 players, allowing for no substitutions. Bushey substituted freely, using 16 players including reserve goalie Trevor Yost in the second half.

At one point in the first half, Reds defender Nick Reep left the game with an injury.

That’s when the Shadow knocked in their first goal. Alika Cosner scored from close range off a nice feed from Zane Higgins at the 31-minute mark. The Shadow made it 2-0 at 38:00 when Zach Kingsley put a rebound shot past Reds keeper Shawn Tobias. Jeff Rose had the first crack at Tobias, but his header hit the far post. Kingsley was there to finish it off.

Spokane went into the half with a 2-0 lead, but it could have - and should have - been more. Spokane took 10 shots at Tobias in the first half, three unsuccessfully by Dave Berto.

Berto made up for it in the second half when Abbas Faridnia passed to him from the 6-yard mark and Berto finished things off from directly in front of the cage at the 50-minute mark.

Rose put on the finishing touches at the 62-minute mark off a penalty kick.

“We played well tonight,” said Rose. “We needed that. It was good for us. That’s what you take out of games like this. We looked good.”

Spokane took 20 shots on goal to Yakima’s 9. Tobias had 11 saves while Mullen and Yost combined for six saves.

Mullen was tested early, stopping three shots in the first 15 minutes. Yost was hardly tested and did not touch the ball until 15 minutes into the second half.

Despite the lopsided match, Berto said the Shadow was surprised over the effortless outcome.

“We were worried,” said Berto, who leads the team with nine goals. “We thought they were going to come to knock us out, I mean literally, get us riled and feisty. We thought it was going to be a barnburner.

“But they didn’t come to play, I don’t think.”