After losing two-goal lead, Elma scores late to beat Hoquiam

Published 1:30 am Wednesday, March 18, 2026

Elma and Montesano earned league victories as we review Tuesday’s boys prep soccer games on the Harbor.

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BOYS PREP SOCCER

Elma 3, Hoquiam 2

Elma scored the go-ahead goal in the game’s waning moments to earn a 3-2 victory over Hoquiam in a 1A Evergreen League game on Tuesday at Davis Field in Elma.

The Eagles (2-1 overall, 2-0 1A Evergreen) looked to be well on their way to a key league win with two goals inside of the game’s first 20 minutes.

Eagles sophomore midfielder Jordan Kain flicked a ball to junior forward Manny Venegas, who scored to put Elma up 1-0 in the 13th minute.

Six minutes later, the Eagles doubled their lead when junior midfielder and co-captain Ivan Rodriguez took a feed from junior forward and fellow co-captain Luis Torres and curled a shot into the top corner of the net for a 2-0 lead.

“We started out fantastic,” Elma head coach Carson Seaberg said. “We were moving the ball, putting a lot of pressure on them and finding a lot of channels through their defense.”

But it was the Grizzlies (0-3, 0-2) that held the momentum going into halftime as junior Alan Torres sent a cross into the box toward freshman forward Carlos Lopez, who scored his third goal in as many games to cut the deficit to 2-1.

Hoquiam would strike again 10 minutes into the second half when J.B. Fabian sent a corner kick toward the far post. Hoquiam’s Israel Ramirez beat three Eagles to the ball to head it into the top corner to knot the game up at 2-2.

“We were there, but he just rose up a little bit better and finished that corner,” Seaberg said of Ramirez’s game-tying score.

Late in the game, Elma had a golden opportunity to score the go-ahead goal when Venegas took a penalty kick, but his shot was saved by Hoquiam goal keeper Santiago Martinez. The rebound fell right to sophomore midfielder Carter Arnold, whose shot attempt sailed over the bar, keeping the score at 2-all.

With less than five minutes to play in the game, Rodriguez made arguably the play of the game when he sent a picture-perfect ball over the top of the Hoquiam defense to Venegas, who collected and finished to score the go-ahead goal in the 78th minute.

Venegas’ goal turned out to be the game-winner in a hard-fought match on the water-slogged Davis Field grass.

“Ivan Rodriguez played the perfect pass and had a standout moment for Elma to win them the match,” Hoquiam head coach Daniel Langer said. “The way Ivan got past several players and played the perfect pass over 20 yards in the air, it was worthy of a game-winning moment.”

Hoquiam had 13 total shots in the game – four on target – while Martinez made 13 saves in the match.

“Heartbreaking game tonight. We dug ourselves into a hole that we had to drag ourselves out of. Two-zero down within 20 minutes gave us a mountain to climb,” Langer said. “The boys showed fight tonight and nearly got the result. Right now, we are all just trying to stay positive, but it’s a challenging time as we keep waiting for our first win.”

Next up, Elma plays at Montesano while Hoquiam takes on Raymond-South Bend in South Bend.

Both games are scheduled for 7 p.m. on Thursday.

Hoquiam 1 1 – 2

Elma 2 1 – 3

Scoring

First half – 1, Elma, Venegas (Kain), 13th minute. 2, Elma, Rodriguez (Torres), 19th minute. 3, Hoquiam, Lopez (A. Torres), 35th minute.

Second half – 4, Hoquiam, Ramirez (Fabian), 50th minute. 5, Elma, Venegas (Rodriguez), 78th minute.

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Montesano 2, Tenino 1

Montesano scored twice in the final 10 minutes to beat Tenino 2-1 in a 1A Evergreen League game on Tuesday at Jack Rottle Field in Montesano.

The Bulldogs (2-1 overall, 2-0 1A Evergreen) trailed the Beavers (1-1, 1-1) in the first half after a Tenino goal in the 38th minute.

“(Tenino) came in with a good game plan,” Montesano assistant coach Gary Mawhorter said. “We moved the ball well in the back, but we just didn’t get the momentum going.”

Late in the second half, Montesano broke through the Beavers’ defensive-minded structure when junior midfielder Brady Whipple ripped a shot into the side netting from 25 yards out to tie the game in the 70th minute.

Six minutes later, the Bulldogs were awarded a penalty kick on an inadvertent hand ball called against Tenino. Senior midfielder Cris Tobar buried the penalty shot to give Monte the 2-1 lead.

Montesano would not allow another shot to secure the comeback victory.

“We weren’t making an active enough offensive attack against their 10 in the box,” said Mawhorter, adding his team made the necessary adjustments in the second half to earn the victory. “They came out and held their ground, scored two goals in the second half and won the game. … It wasn’t the prettiest game to watch, but they all count.”

Montesano hosts Elma in a key league matchup at 7 p.m. on Thursday.

Tenino 1 0 – 1

Montesano 0 2 – 2

Scoring

First half – 1, Tenino, 38th minute.

Second half – 2, Montesano, Whipple, 70th minute. 3, Montesano, Tobar, 76th minute.