Klindt stops 17 shots in TD’s 6-2 loss to Hood River

Klindt fired a ball past Hood River Valley goalkeeper Claire Oswald for her first goal in what turned out to be a 6-2 Riverhawk loss Tuesday at Discovery Field.

“She deserved to take that shot. She worked so hard today in the back with 17 saves. That is amazing.” Nunez said. “It is so great to see her out there and confident and coming out aggressively for balls. She has come a long way this season and has really improved this year as a player and as a leader on this team. I am excited for a couple of more years with her because she is going to be a force to be reckoned with.”

While the scoreboard read a four-goal loss for The Dalles, there were two minutes before the end of the first half and the first 30 seconds of the second half where Hood River goals stopped any chances of pulling off the home win.

Ahead 1-0 in the 39th minute, Eagle junior Kiki Hosaka reeled in a free kick rebound, slipped past the Riverhawk defense and had an open goal to make it 2-0 at the half.

In the first minute of the second half, Cielo Rivera gave Hood River a 3-0 lead.

“It was frustrating because we were getting all of these shots on their keeper, but she (Klindt) was making all these saves,” Rivera said. “I think it just took us settling down and knowing that if we kept the ball moving and we actually finished plays, that we would finally get some more goals. She did great for them.”

Rivera tacked on another goal in the 57th minute to increase the Eagle lead to 4-0, but then The Dalles bounced back.

At the 62nd minute, Victoria Barragan and Brooke McCall played give-and-go, with McCall slipping through the Hood River defense, before firing a shot past Oswald for the tally.

Down 4-1, the Hawks showed some pressure but could not break through.

Erin Sutherland and Halle Campos later added goals a minute apart with three minutes left in the game to produce the final margin.

The Dalles (4-7 overall, 1-2 league) has Hermiston, Pendleton and Hood River Valley over the next two weeks looking to try to solidify their playoff standing.

If the Hawks can continue to show their aggression, Barragan said that good things will arise.

“I have been saying it all season and still believe it – We can compete against any team that we go up against,” Barragan said. “Physically, we are there, so it comes down to our attitude and our motivation. I think this team has a bright future if we can get that attitude and motivation going. My hope is that we can take what we did here today and use it against Hermiston and show our best.”

The Dalles next hosts the second-place Hermiston Bulldogs at 4 p.m. Thursday for senior night.