Sweet Home’s girls soccer team came away with a tie at Central after holding the Panthers scoreless on their home field.
“The girls just played amazing,” said Coach Ramiro Santana. “This one was intense. Even though we didn’t score, we had the most opportunities.”
Freshman goalkeeper Kristen Tolle made some good saves, he said.
The field conditions were not ideal, which made things more difficult, Santana said.
“I had to walk around the field with the girls and show them where all the holes and other stuff are,” he said.
“That was an excellent game we played.”
Things were more disappointing Monday against Westside Christian, which, Santana said, is ranked second in the state behind Philomath.
“We have the two top teams in the state in our league,” he said.
It showed Monday as the outmanned Huskies lost 9-0.
“They beat us by kicking balls over the head of our defense and beating us with their speed,” Santana said. “We do OK for a while, but after that they wear us out. We can’t keep up. So far we haven’t been able to beat anybody who plays like that.”
He said that, on top of the size, speed and skill Westside brought, some of the refereeing did not go Sweet Home’s way, particularly the officials’ reluctance to call off-sides on several occasions.
The Huskies will get a respite Wednesday, Oct. 1, when they host Horizon Christian at 4:15 p.m. They are then scheduled to play at Western Mennonite on Monday.
“Today was a little too much for us,” Santnaa said. “I think just being at home, the girls play really good.”