By Matthew Nash
Olympic Peninsula News Group
BREMERTON — With milestone seasons on the line Thursday night for both Port Angeles and Sequim’s girls soccer squads, a swift kick from a freshman put the Roughriders back into the state playoffs after 30 years.
Port Angeles (11-7 overall) won 2-1 in a shootout with four penalty kicks to three over the Wolves (11-8) in a Class 2A West Central District Tournament showdown at Silverdale Stadium.
The win put the Roughriders up against the Orting Cardinals (13-3-2) Saturday night for either the fifth or sixth seed going into the 2A State Tournament Nov. 7-9. Results were not available by press time.
Forward Delany Wenzl took the crucial penalty kick, going to the left goal post past Sequim goalkeeper Clair Henninger, which she said was her first-ever successful penalty kick.
“It definitely was nerve-racking,” Wenzl said. “I just had to think back to what we practiced on and take a deep breath.”
Port Angeles head coach Scott Moseley said Wenzl was “a stud freshman in a critical moment,” and he chose her for the fifth and final spot in the shootout because she has the hardest kick on the team.
“It was perfect timing,” Moseley said. “She placed it well.”
The win guaranteed a spot at the state tournament, which Moseley said is something he’s pushed for the girls’ soccer program to achieve since taking over eight years ago.
“It’s been 30 years since we’ve been to state,” he said. “There’s a lot of excitement and happy tears out there … It’s so exciting for them. They’ll play the next couple of games with confidence. It’s just a huge step we’ve made it to state.”
This was the second time this season Port Angeles and Sequim decided a game against one another in a shootout with Sequim winning 1-0 on penalty kicks (3-1) on Sept. 27. The Roughriders rebounded to beat the Wolves 4-1 on Oct. 20.
At the district match Thursday, the Wolves seemed to start the game with more intensity.
At the 4-minute mark, Midfielder Yana Hoesel drove a corner kick into a flurry of players, which bounced and rolled past Riders goalkeeper Madelyn Wenzl for a goal.
Sequim head coach Derek Vander Velde said it appeared to be an own goal because of how wild the situation became in front of the net.
Play went back and forth in the first half with both goalies making several saves but momentum didn’t swing until early in the second half.
Riders’ midfielder Shannon Cosgrove said she found her favorite spot to shoot from and “just ripped it” at the 44th minute in to tie the game at 1-1 in the second half. It was her first goal of the season.
Port Angeles controlled the ball for most of the second half and two overtimes but neither team could capitalize on breakaways.
In the shootout, Sequim struck first with Henninger placing a goal inside the right goalpost.
Port Angeles’ Taylar Clark evened it at one goal each, then Adare McMinn scored on Sequim’s next shot giving them the 2-1 lead. Both teams missed their next two shots before Roughrider Kyrsten McGuffy shot the ball past Henninger to even the shootout at 2-2.
Sequim’s Yana Hoesel put the Wolves up 3-2 with a shot to the top right corner and both teams missed their next shots leading to Leah Haworth to sink Port Angeles’ third goal in the left corner of the net to even it at three each.
Sequim saw its third missed shot ricochet off the goal post in the shootout, giving Delany Wenzl the opportunity to win. Her goal soared into the left side of the net.
“It was definitely the lift we needed,” Wenzl said. “It’s been 30 years since we’ve been to state and my heart is racing.”
Looking ahead, Cosgrove said the Riders already work well together so this win will boost their confidence going to state.
“We just need to score more,” she said. “We just need to be more confident.”
Record season
Despite the loss, the Wolves set a school record with 11 wins, three more than the previous 1991-92 squad. They also won the program’s first postseason game with a 1-0 win over Steilacoom on Oct. 29.
“Everyone knows in the soccer world it’s a funny game,” Vander Velde said. “I couldn’t have asked my girls to do more this season or tonight. I felt like we came out to fight. We had a lot of shots on goal and it just didn’t fall our way.”
Midfielder Adare McMinn said the Wolves “came out on fire.”
“Everyone’s intensity was super high and everyone wanted [the win] so bad,” she said. “It was our rivals. We gave it everything we had. To be that close makes it that much harder.”
Moseley said defeating Sequim was like winning a game against your cousin.
“So many of the players know each other and play year round and they are friends,” he said.
“Their coaching staff is great and I’m going to suggest [Vander Velde] get Coach of the Year for the turn around they had.”
