THE DALLES seniors (pictured from left to right, back row), Johanne Strand, Melissa Cruz, Yesenia Aguilar, Marta Gamez and Bri Stavaas-Jamack join (in front row), Kim Vazquez and Jessica Flores during a pregame ceremony on senior day Tuesday versus Hood River Valley. The visiting Eagles won, 3-0.
THE DALLES seniors (pictured from left to right, back row), Johanne Strand, Melissa Cruz, Yesenia Aguilar, Marta Gamez and Bri Stavaas-Jamack join (in front row), Kim Vazquez and Jessica Flores during a pregame ceremony on senior day Tuesday versus Hood River Valley. The visiting Eagles won, 3-0.
Early goals throw a damper on any team trying to establish some good rhythm and flow in a ball game.
Hood River Valley’s Myrna Diaz scored within the first minute and Claire Davies and Sindy Magana tacked on insurance tallies, to lead the No. 14 Eagles to a 3-0 victory over The Dalles on senior night Tuesday in The Dalles.
“Both teams obviously wanted it,” said senior defender Marta Gamez. “It was senior night and our last home game, we all wanted to go out with a bang. We did try to keep up and we did a very good job, but it seemed like they were always a step ahead, getting those 50-50 balls.”
Ahead by one goal late in the opening stanza, the Eagles padded their lead at the 35-minute mark.
Kassidy Davidson swooped in from the edge and fired a shot on goal, but TD goalkeeper Jennifer Bonham made the save.
On the rebound, Davies found some wiggle room on the right side of the net and tapped the ball into an open net to make it a 2-0 contest at the break.
While the Eagles had just enough offense to maintain their edge, the defense did its part in holding off the Riverhawk forwards and midfielders.
Six times this season, Hood River has held teams to one goal or less. Tuesday’s shutout was the third consecutive clean sheet posted by the Eagles in league action.
The duo of Vanessa Silva and Sophia Marble made two saves apiece for the combined shutout.
“We have done a good job of marking up and keeping the penalty area clear,” said captain Hannah Bergemann. “We have been doing a better job of defending and getting the ball back to our forwards to get back on offense. It has been working well of late.”
In the 53rd minute of the second half, Davidson created another chance with a shot on goal, but TD goalkeeper Emma Ell-Smith made the save, only to have Magana, a junior midfielder and defender, at the right spot for a rebound tally to cap the scoring.
“It is two games in a row that we allowed a goal in the first minute,” said TD coach Colby Tonn. “When you are coming from behind, it is always tough.”
Tonn stills eyes consistency, but also wants his team to work on tracking back, staying goal side and playing the ball into the corners rather than playing it up the middle.
After executing those aspects to perfection in the first two league wins, the five-year coach wants his group to fix those fundamental aspects in these last few league tilts.
If the Riverhawks can finish in the top-3, they have a playoff berth within reach.
They still play Pendleton, Hermiston and Hood River one more time, but on the road, so if they can muscle up and gain some ground on the rest of the pack they can still be on the field when November hits the calendar.
“It only gets tougher now because we are on the road three games in a row,” coach Tonn said.
“If we want to play for something in our last game of the year, we need to go to Pendleton and Hermiston and get some victories, then we will all be in the same boat,” he added. “Are we pleased with two victories? Or are we in for more and are we looking to fight for that first place?”
“We will find our answer on Thursday (at 4p.m. in Hermiston),” he concluded.
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