J.J. Mata took a shot and scored at home Oct. 29 to give the Huskies a goal on the way out as the they closed out their boys soccer season with a 7-1 loss to Newport.
That night, “we were really unfocused when we started the game,” said Coach Eric Stutzer. “There was a lot going on.”
The Huskies had their senior night and a junior high soccer team celebration, he said. It was cold, and the Huskies had a short warm-up period.
The game had just two referees, Stutzer said, and Newport picked up a quick score from a player who was off sides but didn’t draw a call.
The refs were doing the best they could, Stutzer said. Without the refs on the line, that’s hard to see.
But there’s a ref shortage, he said. “People have got to start treating refs better. It puts you at a distinct disadvantage when you’re not able to have a dedicated lineman.”
And that shot demoralized the Huskies, who already a little flat, a bit, Stutzer said. They struggled defensively in the middle of the field, and Newport capitalized on that.
“We were just stopping in the middle of the box,” Stutzer said. Jarett Owen came off the wing and did an excellent job helping out in the middle, but it left side open.
Newport led 3-0 at halftime.
Offensively, “we were doing amazing,” Stutzer said. The Huskies had a number of great shots and great movement. Zach Zanona had a really good look early in the second half from the top of the box in a one-on-one situation with the goalie, but it went over the top of the goal.
Stanley Blank had a breakaway with the goalie out of position, but his shot went wide, and Chase Lopez had a couple of good shots.
Late in the game, Mata “got free at the top of the 18 and scored it in the top corner,” Stutzer said.
The Huskies ended the season with no wins.
Inexperience was a key factor this season, Stutzer said, but through it all, the Huskies made tremendous improvement.
Most of these players have been playing a year or two. Owen is the only three-year letterman.
“It would be hard-pressed for anyone sitting in the stands to not say there was improvement,” Stutzer said. “Massive improvement.”
All of the Oregon West Coaches commented on it, Stutzer said. By the end of the season, “we weren’t quite as green.”
Stat sheets show the story, he said, pulling out games from the beginning of the season and comparing them to last week’s games. The early games were sparsely populated by notations for blocks and runs on goal. Last week’s games were covered in notes on both ends of the field.
On paper, the Huskies were doing far better, Stutzer said. On the field, they were more intense and aggressive. They were putting offensive pressure on their opponents. They were winning 50-50 balls. They were competing.
“They started playing better as a team,” Stutzer said. They showed “improvement from beginning to end. I think we can’t say enough about the level of improvement.”
That’s because they never gave up, with “absolutely no quit whatsoever,” Stutzer said, even after the pummeling they took from Woodburn to open league play.
Four teams went to the play-in and playoff schedule, Stutzer said. “That says a lot about how difficult our league is.”
Rivals Stayton and Woodburn could easily end up in the championship game against each other, he said.
“In every aspect, they could have given up,” Stutzer said, but they didn’t. They persevered. “They got better. They started improving their tactical play. They improved their technical play.”
“I think there’s a lot of good things to look for next year.”
This team has some tough experience now, he said. It graduates just three seniors, Nich James, Owen and Zanona, but it will bring on six to eight freshmen who played eighth-grade soccer this year, and those players beat a Central High School feeder program and tied those in Woodburn and Stayton.
Four or five freshmen were varsity starters this year, he said. That’ll make a difference going forward.