HOOD RIVER – Shutout wins over Centennial and Parkrose have the Hood River Valley girls soccer team squarely in the thick of the Class 5A state playoff race.
The Eagles, ranked 12th heading into the week of Oct. 20, have three regular season matches remaining, including a key showdown Oct. 21 at Canby. HRV (7-4-1 overall, 3-2 Northwest Oregon Conference) and Canby (7-5, 3-2) are in a three-way, third-place tie with Putnam in league play.
The top four NWOC teams automatically qualify for the 16-team state playoffs. There also are two statewide at-large berths allocated to the top ranked teams that are not already automatic qualifiers.
Hood River also has home matches remaining against Hillsboro (2-3 NWOC) on Sept. 23 and Milwaukie (0-4) on Sept. 28 (HRV’s senior night). Hood River qualified for state in 2024, which snapped a four-year playoff drought.
Hood River’s wins this past week came Oct. 14 – 1-0 vs. Centennial – and Oct. 16 at Parkrose, by a 4-0 advantage. In the road contest, Josie Faaborg score five minutes before halftime to give HRV a 1-0 lead. Lily Clermont had space on defender on the left side and took a low shot from about 15 yards out. The ball was deflected by the Parkrose keeper to the right of the goal. Faaborg was in the right place at the right time, and one touched the ball into the back of the net.
Faaborg scored two minutes later off an assist from Clermont. HRV’s second half goals came from Ellie Kinsfogel on a 23-yard boomer from straight on, and from Izabella Galvez, who one touched a perfect cross from the right side.
Defensive highlighted the Centennial match, as the Eagle back line and keeper Valeria Miramontes-Alvarez limited the chances by the visitors. Faaborg scored the lone goal. She lifted a short, left-footed shot off a pass from a teammate into the upper left corner of the goal 10 minutes into the second half.
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