Riverside’S Roll Ends In Semifinals

2A soccer

For nine Riverside seniors and their teammates, a dream ended Friday. This was supposed to be the Rams’ year to win it all.

They were undefeated heading into Friday morning’s State 2A soccer semifinal match against South Whidbey at Kiggins Bowl. They had outscored opponents 13-1 in the playoffs.

It took an exchange student from Finland to end Riverside’s title hopes. Falcons defender Topi Manu made a run up the middle and booted the game-winning goal into the right corner of the net from 15 yards out at 70 minutes as South Whidbey won 1-0. It was Manu’s 13th goal of the season. The Falcons’ leading scorer, Joseph Supang (23 goals), had the assist.

“We played well, but I guess they wanted it more when it came down to crunch time,” said Rams senior midfielder Wink Hodgson, who chased Manu on the goal. “That’s all I can think of. I know we’re the better team.”

Riverside (16-1-2) now will look to match its 1999 third-place finish when it plays for third and fourth place at 9 a.m. today against Steilacoom. The Sentinels (16-2) lost to Wahluke 2-1 in Friday’s second semifinal. South Whidbey (16-4), making its first state appearance, and Wahluke (13-2), a Class 1A school from Mattawa, play for the championship at 3 p.m. today.

Riverside outshot South Whidbey 14-10 and had a number of near goals. Senior B.J. Ostby, the hero last week with two goals in the Rams’ 2-1 quarterfinal win over defending state champion East Valley of Yakima, hit the crossbar on a first-half free kick from 25 yards.

“With the flow of the first half, if we had finished one of those chances it would be a different game,” said Riverside coach Kevin Moon. “But that’s the game. If you don’t finish, things can swing in an instant.”

The loss spoiled an impressive outing in the net by senior keeper Logan Krohn, who made eight saves.

Rams junior Jake Moug, who has 35 goals this spring, was marked all match, but Moug said Great Northern League rival Pullman played better defense against him.

Moug was pushed down several times in the opening minutes and the teams combined for 28 fouls, 16 against Riverside.

Rain late Thursday and again Friday morning made the turf slick and both teams had a hard time keeping possession early.

Steilacoom senior forward Brian Ford left immediately after his team’s 11 a.m. match for Yakima and the State 2A tennis tournament. Ford and doubles partner Bryan Foster had to forfeit their 1:30 p.m. match because Ford was playing soccer and they were scheduled to play at 6 p.m. in the consolation bracket. They were the No. 3 seed out of their district. Ford is expected to be back in Vancouver for this morning’s third-fourth match against Riverside.