BOYS PREP SOCCER

Aberdeen 2, Hudson’s Bay 0

Aberdeen took a big first step toward achieving its postseason goals with a 2-0 victory over Hudson’s Bay in the first round of the 2A District 4 Tournament on Saturday in Aberdeen.

The Bobcats (16-0 overall) started in typical fashion, penetrating deep into Eagles territory and creating offensive chances.

Senior midfielder Edwin Quintana got Aberdeen on the board with a goal off a Carlos Mendoza assist within the first 15 minutes of the game.

Aberdeen kept the pressure on and doubled its lead in the 18th minute when Hudson’s Bay was unable to clear a ball out of the front of its own net. Carlos Mendoza tapped the ball to Quintana, who slotted a shot to the left post from the middle of the penalty box.

But while Aberdeen “managed the possession really well,” according to head coach Larry Fleming, the Cats failed to put another goal across despite dictating the pace of play, which left the door open for Hudson’s Bay.

“For the most part, we did OK, but there were a couple of times where our touch was a little off in clearing the ball and we left the ball for them near our goal,” Fleming said. “We’ve got to clean that up if we are going to beat other teams. … We need to get better communication and a better first touch, not just on defense but we had some bad touches up front. We get a clean touch and then shoot right away, we score a bunch of goals.”

RYAN SPARKS | THE DAILY WORLD Aberdeen defender Hugo Garcia (2) dribbles away from Hudson’s Bay midfielder Elijah King during the Bobcats’ 2-0 victory in a 2A Evergreen District 4 Tournament game on Saturday in Aberdeen.

On the handful of times the Eagles had a scoring chance, Aberdeen keeper Antonio Granados came up huge.

In the first half, Granados made a diving deflection of a close, angled shot and pounced on the rebound just ahead of Eagles attackers.

Another Hudson’s Bay chance resulted in no goal late in the first half as a dangerous deep cross from the far wing rolled across the Aberdeen goal line, a few feet in front of Granados, but no Eagle attacker was able to get a foot on the ball.

Granados came up with several key saves in the second half, including making a leaping grab in traffic of a loose ball that bounced off the crossbar and a diving save on another close, open shot with just over 2:30 left in the match.

Granados helped Aberdeen to preserve its two-goal lead and record the Bobcats’ 12th shutout of the season.

“I was just trying to keep the team alive and telling them that we wanted to stay unbeaten,” Granados said. “We’ve given up a max of four goals this season. That has kept me well in shape to want to strive for better and keep that record going.”

RYAN SPARKS | THE DAILY WORLD Aberdeen goal keeper Antonio Granados clears the ball during Aberdeen’s 2-0 district-tournament win over Hudson’s Bay on Saturday at Stewart Field in Aberdeen.

“After we scored two, I tried to tell them to focus. It’s a long game and it’s 0-0. None of the teams that are in the playoffs are going to be bad. They are there for a reason,” Aberdeen head coach Larry Fleming said. “We really had some miscommunication on defense and left some guys wide open a couple of times. … I’m a little disappointed in that. These guys know 2-0 is not a big lead at all. … But I have to say, we had so many chances in the second half and just pounded the goal. We were a little unlucky, we didn’t finish great, but their goalie did a good job and their defenders were hustling and getting the ball out. I’ve got to give them some credit because if they are not going all out, we score four or five goals.”

With the victory, Aberdeen advances to the semifinal round of the district tournament, where it will host league-rival Tumwater at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, with a state-tournament berth at stake.

“(The victory) definitely relieves a lot of pressure considering we came off a little bit loose at the beginning of the game. I thought we finished strong toward the end,” Granados said of the win. “It feels great. Hopefully, we can keep it going and keep the undefeated streak going.”

Hudson’s Bay 0 0 – 0

Aberdeen 2 0 – 2

Scoring

First half – 1, Aberdeen, Quintana (Carlos Mendoza). 2, Aberdeen, Quintana (Carlos Mendoza), 18th minute.

Second half – none.

PHOTO BY FOREST WORGUM Montesano’s Mateo Sanchez, right, plays the ball during the Bulldogs’ 7-2 victory in the 1A District 4 Tournament on Saturday in Montesano.

Montesano 7, La Center 2

Montesano scored seven goals for the second consecutive game to earn a 7-2 win over La Center in a 1A District 4 Tournament first-round game on Saturday in Montesano.

The Bulldogs (16-1) trailed 1-0 after an early La Center goal before a Montesano offensive onslaught ensued. The Bulldogs scored four unanswered goals to close out the half, with senior midfielder Mateo Sanchez scoring twice within a four minute span to take a 2-1 lead followed by goals from sophomore forward Felix Romero and senior midfielder Levi Clements.

PHOTO BY FOREST WORGUM Montesano’s Felix Romero (14) presses forward against La Center’s Reynolds Cottle during the Bulldogs’ 7-2 victory in the 1A District 4 Tournament on Saturday in Montesano.

Clements added his second of the game off an assist from Sanchez in the 50th minute to take a 5-1 lead before a penalty led to a La Center penalty-kick goal in the 56th minute.

Sanchez closed out the game with a hat trick, scoring off an assist from freshman midfielder Cristofer Tobar in the 68th minute.

Montesano had 29 shots in the game – 16 on target – and earned seven corner kicks and 12 free kicks in the contest.

With the victory, Montesano advances to the semifinals, where it will face Columbia-White Salmon in the semifinals at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, with a chance to secure a state-playoff berth on the line.

PHOTO BY FOREST WORGUM Montesano’s Cristofer Tobar (19) pulls away from La Center’s Roman Ferguson during the Bulldogs’ 7-2 victory in the 1A District 4 Tournament on Saturday in Montesano.

La Center 1 1 – 2

Montesano 4 3 – 7

Scoring

First half – 1, La Center, 6th minute. 2, Montesano, Sanchez, 12th minute. 3, Montesano, Sanchez (Tobar), 16th minute. 4, Montesano, Romero (Sanchez), 28th minute. 5, Montesano, Levi Clements (Tobar), 33rd minute.

Second half – 6, Montesano, Levi Clements (Sanchez), 50th minute. 7, La Center, 56th minute. 8, Montesano, Sanchez (Tobar), 68th minute.

Other scores

1A District 4 Tournament

Columbia-White Salmon 6, Elma 1

(Elma hosts La Center in an elimination game at 6 p.m. Tuesday)

Seton Catholic 6, Raymond-South Bend 0

(RSB plays at Eatonville in an elimination game at 7 p.m. Tuesday)