On Halloween eve in the Pacific Northwest, it was a cool, clear evening, but all was quiet in the Shorecrest Scots’ locker room. The pumpkins were empty, not a haggis in sight. They were resting their feet with a bye, as the #2 seed.
Meanwhile, the 3A District 1 play-in contests were going ahead, with #6 Shorewood facing #11 Mountlake Terrace, at the familiar confines of Shoreline Stadium. In this all-WesCo South matchup, Stormrays were favored over the Hawks, having won both home and away fixtures during the league regular season, but Mountlake Terrace had adjusted with a plan.
They came out in an aggressive 4-2-4 formation, to counter the Rays’ 3-4-3 setup. It was an ingenious plan, to cede the midfield but outnumber the opponent in both attack and defense.
This befuddled Shorewood as the Mountlake Terrace midfield duo did not keep or carry the ball, but instantly passed it to their attacking front. The speedy wingers/strikers were outplaying the Rays’ fullbacks and lone central defender, resulting in several early shots on goal, denied only by rangy, athletic keeper #0.
When Rays attacked with three strikers, they were met by a disciplined quad low block, aided by their defensive midfield duo. This backfield press harried every forward’s push into the box, denying possession repeatedly.
The Hawks’ precise passing and quick ball movement bypassed the Rays’ midfield, and Shorewood was on their heels, desperately clinging on to a scoreless game.
Mountlake Terrace was dominating, but could they keep up this punishing pace; could Shorewood hold them off and weather the storm?
Towards the end of the first half, the Rays’ right winger crossed hopefully into the box, expecting the defensive swarm to repel it, but the ball bounced awkwardly between the keeper and the defender.
The keeper hesitated momentarily, and Shorewood striker #17 managed to nudge the ball ever so slightly to bounce slowly, inexorably, into the net. Rays had improbably taken the lead, but could they hang on to it till halftime? They duly did so, but the Shorewood coaches had to change strategy, and fast!
Realizing that the Hawks’ attack flowed through the compact midfield, the Rays countered by using the wide channels to funnel the ball to the wingers, to lob balls to the center-forward. The Rays also deployed a midfield press, swarming the duo with a quartet, dispossessing them before they could pass it forward.
Shorewood was slowly wresting control of the match, but with time ticking down, Mountlake Terrace pressed forward with urgency, seeking the equalizer. At the two-minute mark, there seemed to be an interminable period of stoppage time.
Hawks willed themselves forward, attackers crowding the box, a ball floats in from the wing, their ace striker controls, spins and unleashes a zinger, that is caught smartly by the agile, sturdy keeper #1.
The final whistle blows, prompting relief more than joy, in a tight battle to advance to the quarter-finals.
Final score: Shorewood 1 - Mountlake Terrace 0
Mountlake Terrace came with a trick, but Shorewood left with a treat.
Shorewood will move on to face #3 Monroe (WesCo North) away, on Saturday 11/1. Of interest to our Tartan friends, on Whidbey Island, #7 Oak Harbor (Northwest Conference) faced off against #10 Stanwood (WesCo North), with the Wildcats prevailing over the Spartans, 5-0.
Oak Harbor will move on to face #2 Shorecrest away, on Saturday 11/1. In the other quarter-final matches, #1 Snohomish will play #8 Meadowdale, and #4 Edmonds-Woodway will play #5 Ferndale, with the Mavericks and Golden Eagles out-spooking their play-in opponents.
All quarter-final games will be played at the home field of the higher seed. The sweets of semi-finals and finals beckon the winners, while the losers face the specter of the playoffs for third and fourth place. Qualification for State is at stake!
NEWS FLASH:
Shorewood high school’s girls varsity soccer team put on a gutsy performance last Saturday afternoon in cool, rainy conditions at the 3A District 1 playoff quarter-final match of the league postseason soccer tournament.
Having edged #11 Mountlake Terrace two nights ago, they now faced #3 Monroe, which had lost only one game in WesCo North. Would they be cowed, or rise to the occasion? In a tightly contested match, the score was tied at the end of regulation, and ended after extra-time deadlocked 1-1.
The punishment for not winning outright is the diabolical ordeal of penalty kicks. Stormrays held their nerve, making all their spot-kicks, while Bearcats blinked, twice, ending in a 4-2 margin. On the eve of Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead), whose dreams live on, and whose hopes die?
Final score: Shorewood 2 - Monroe 1
At the midway point of the District 1 playoffs, #1 Snohomish edged scrappy #8 Meadowdale, 1-0; #7 Oak Harbor surprisingly crushed #2 Shorecrest, 5-1; #4 Edmonds-Woodway defeated #5 Ferndale, 2-0.
So the semi-final matchups are Shorewood vs Oak Harbor, and Snohomish vs Edmonds-Woodway, on Tuesday 11/4, for the right to meet in the final, and qualify for State!
Anything can and probably will happen, as there was tension and high drama in Monroe, where the staunchest players stepped up to keep Shorewood alive.
However, the journey is not over for Shorecrest, Monroe, Ferndale and Meadowdale, as they enter a playoff to try win 3rd or 4th place, and still go to State! Watch. This. Space.
Two Residential Structure Fires Today 
First Fire – Just after 10:00am
Test your smoke alarms once a month
Change non–10-year batteries every 6 months
Practice your family evacuation plan
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