SNOHOMISH — It was a showdown of the top two boys soccer teams in the Wesco 4A, and for 90 minutes — 80 minutes of regulation, 10 minutes of overtime — it was a back-and-forth battle. Often physical and sometimes flat-out feisty.
At the end an apparent Snohomish goal was waved off, and the result was a 1-1 tie between the Panthers and visiting Mariner.
For the Panthers, the good news is that they remain undefeated this season. The two-time defending state 4A champions are 9-0-2 in Wesco matches, 10-0-3 overall.
For Mariner, the good news was a toe-to-toe matchup and eventual draw with one of the state’s elite soccer teams.
“You’ve got to give it to Snohomish,” said Marauders coach Vince DeSimone. “They are still the two-time state champions. (But) our boys do what they have to do. Stay with them and play until the end of the game. And they gave them the game of their lives.”
Snohomish coach Dan Pingrey called it “a good battle. … (Mariner goalkeeper Drexel Cardona) made some fantastic saves. The kids had a good battle and I appreciate that. A first-place, second-place battle.”
Pingrey was less complimentary about the officiating. It was, he said, “some of the worst reffing I’ve ever seen. … The (Washington Interscholastic Activities Association) and everybody else can get as mad as they want, but that was an embarrassment.
“That was probably some of the worst referring I’ve seen in a lot of years. And I don’t care, you can quote that.”
Pingrey had no explanation for a Snohomish shot in the waning seconds of overtime that bounced into the goal, setting off a very brief celebration among the Panther players, only to be disallowed a moment later.
“Apparently there was some kind of foul,” he said. “(I have) no idea. Guys went up and challenged. … It went in and apparently (the referee) saw something the rest of us didn’t.”
Both goals came in the game’s early minutes, and within just a few minutes of each other.
Snohomish struck first off a throw-in in the offensive end. The heave came to forward Logan Stapleton, who made a backward header to teammate Thomas McKeown, and he followed up with a leaping header that carried past Cardona into the left side of the net.
Less than five minutes later the Marauders got the equalizer, and it began with a long, high goalie kick by Cardona. The ball landed in Mariner’s offensive end and bounced toward the goal, where there was a scramble won by Mariner midfielder Abdulkader Al-Bayati.
His header popped over oncoming Snohomish goalie Cameron Beardsley from several yards out, and there were no other Panther defenders nearby as the ball bounced slowly on into the goal.
In the second half and OT, both teams had chances for the go-ahead goal. But both goalies made some outstanding stops to keep the score knotted.
“They had chances to score and our goalkeeper came up big,” DeSimone said. “But their goalkeeper came up big, too. It was back and forth, back and forth.”
Though disappointed at having to settle for a tie, “the fact is that we’re still undefeated,” Pingrey pointed out. “It’s not a loss. This was an opportunity for us to learn and get better. And I liked our effort at the end. We were putting a lot of pressure and getting a lot of effort.”
At Snohomish H.S.
Goals—Abdulkader Al-Bayati (M), Thomas McKeown (S). Records—Mariner 8-2-1 league, 9-2-2 overall. Snohomish 9-0-2, 10-0-3.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
