It’s been nearly two weeks since the high-flying Elma Eagles boys soccer team took the field.

The layoff didn’t appear to slow them down much.

Using a patient, cohesive offensive attack and a lock down defense, Elma took down the visiting Ilwaco Fishermen 5-0 on the rain-soaked turf at Montesano High School on Wednesday.

Elma senior forward and leading scorer Canon Seaberg led the way for the Eagles (7-0-2 overall, 7-0 1A Evergreen), scoring a hat trick in the game.

Seaberg opened the scoring in the 11th minute, receiving a feed from sophomore midfielder Jose Perez and weaving his way through the Ilwaco back line. After breaking through the defense, Seaberg snuck a well-placed shot just inside the far post for a 1-0 lead.

Seaberg was at it again in the 28th minute, using his body to gain control of a lobbed pass by midfielder Amador Rameriz while fending off two Fishermen defenders. He then placed another shot past the Ilwaco keeper’s right side for a 2-0 lead.

“You kind of expect that from your senior leaders, whether its Canon, Manny (Hernandez), Valencia (Mendoza), whoever. Today, it was Canon,” Elma head coach Carson Seaberg said of his son’s two first half goals. “It gave us that little bit of cushion and allowed us to play into the game in the second half.”

Just before the half, Elma got the all-important three-goal lead when sophomore midfielder Cason Seaberg fed the ball to Hernandez, who ripped a hard shot into the back of the net for a 3-0 lead in the 40th minute.

“That 2-0 score in soccer is always so treacherous. You’re one slip away from it being a one-goal game again,” Coach Seaberg said. “I’m really proud of Manny and the way he got in there and just finished that goal. He plays at 100 miles an hour and, sometimes, he shoots it at the goal 100 miles an hour. That one, he took his time and it was a firm shot and a beautiful finish. … When he’s accurate, with his speed and ability to stretch the field down those lines, it just gives us that one more weapon.”

After the half, Elma continued to apply pressure.

After a foul was called against Ilwaco just a few feet outside the 18-yard box, Canon Seaberg gave the Eagles a 4-0 lead by drilling home the free kick on a shot that was deflected off an Ilwaco defender and into the net in the 50th minute.

In the 67th minute, Perez picked up his second assist of the game, sending a perfect through pass to senior midfielder Valencia Mendoza in open space. Mendoza did the rest, placing a hard, low shot just inside the near post for a 5-0 advantage.

The victory keeps Elma undefeated in league play and atop the league standings, 1.5 games ahead of second-place Montesano.

Coach Seaberg felt his team worked through any signs of rust as the Eagles had not seen the pitch in competitive play since blanking Tenino 5-0 on April 1.

“I think in the first half we had some of those moments, but it wasn’t all us,” he said. “Ilwaco did a nice job on their game plan. They stretched the field and moved the ball forward and worked hard to run underneath it, which disconnected us a little bit.”

The head coach added that there is still work to be done as he feels his team left some additional goals on the field, including a few point-blank scoring chances that rang of the crossbar or sailed off-target in front of a wide-open net.

“It’s funny, sometimes you get a 5-0 win and you’re kind of like, ‘We left some out there.’ Which we did,” Coach Seaberg said. “We’re creating those opportunities and we just have to stay poised. … We don’t get frustrated and we stick with our game plan.”

Elma takes on Eatonville at 7 p.m. on Friday at Eatonville High School.

RYAN SPARKS | THE DAILY WORLD Elma defender Amador Rameriz, left, looks upfield during Elma’s 5-0 win over Ilwaco on Wednesday in Montesano.

Ilwaco 0 0 — 0

Elma 2 3 — 5

Scoring

First half — 1, Elma, Canon Seaberg (Perez), 11th minute. 2, Elma, Canon Seaberg (Rameriz), 28th minute. 3, Hernandez (Cason Seaberg), 40th minute.

Second half — 4, Elma, Canon Seaberg, 50th minute. 5, Elma, Valencia (Perez), 67th minute.

Montesano 2, Tenino 1

The Montesano Bulldogs got a clutch goal late in the game from their freshman phenom in defeating Tenino 2-1 on Wednesday in Tenino.

With Montesano (5-1, 4-1) trailing Tenino (5-3, 4-2) by a half-game for second place in the 1A Evergreen League, the Bulldogs drew first blood.

Montesano’s Jiovanny Torres scored for a 1-0 lead in the 26th minute and the Bulldogs — a team comprised mostly of freshmen and sophomores — would make the lead stick through the remainder of the first half.

Tenino responded with a goal late in the game when a shot from outside the box spun through Monte keeper Jayden McElravy to tie the game at 1-1.

One minute later, Montesano’s leading scorer — freshman Felix Romero — took a pass at midfield, maneuvered through the Tenino defense, created some room and rocketed a shot from 20 yards out that was too hot for the Tenino keeper to handle, giving Montesano the lead at 2-1.

“He’s a great kid. He’s coachable and he goes 100 percent,” Montesano head coach Fidel Sanchez said of Romero. “We’re lucky to have him.”

The Bulldogs would hold on for the victory and move into sole possession of second place in the league standings.

Montesano outshot Tenino 11-6 and held a 7-4 advantage in corner kicks.

The Bulldogs play at Forks at 6 p.m. on Friday.

Montesano 1 1 — 2

Tenino 0 1 — 1

Scoring

First half — 1, Montesano, Torres, 25th minute.

Second half — 2, Tenino, N/A, 72nd minute. 3, Montesano, Romero, 73rd minute.

PREP TRACK & FIELD

Aberdeen winners from WF West meet

Aberdeen competed in a three-way meet with Rochester at WF West High School in Chehalis on Wednesday.

Full meet results can be found at tinyurl.com/bddnp8dm.

Aberdeen winners are as follows:

Boys — Omar Jonas Urbina (200, 24.82 PR); Julian Campos (800, 2:03.59), Gary Sherman (1600, 4:59.42), Collin Babineau (110 hurdles, 13.19 PR); Tyler Bates (shot put, 46-11; discus, 137-11), Andrew Troeh (high jump, 5-08; triple jump, 40-05);Henry Nelson (long jump, 18-03.50); 4×400 relay (Babineau, Trey Anderson, Jeremy Sawyer, Urbina, 46.59); 4×400 relay (Campos, Anderson, Urbina, Nelson, 3:50.28).

Other scores

Prep Boys Soccer

Eatonville 8, Raymond-South Bend 0

Prep Baseball

Ilwaco 7, Pe Ell-Willapa Valley 4 (Tuesday)

Ilwaco 20, Pe Ell-Willapa Valley 7 (Tuesday)

Prep Softball

Chief Leschi 18, Raymond 0 (Tuesday)

Raymond 19, Chief Leschi 0 (Tuesday)