GIRLS PREP SOCCER

Montesano, 3 Elma 1

Down early, Montesano roared back with two second-half goals from Anna Ayres to pick up the 3-1 road win over Elma at Davis Field on Tuesday.

Elma (4-2, 1-2 Evergreen 1A) picked up an early goal in the 13th minute off a free kick from Jillian Bieker. The Eagles’ leading-goal scorer hit a shot that made its way over Monte’s defensive wall and past keeper Ellie Barbo for an early 1-0 lead.

Elma head coach Evan Valentine said Bieker’s performance has been impressive lately, especially as she has seen her role increase as injuries have impacted Elma.

“Jill has been working really hard. I’m asking a lot of her, I’m probably asking too much of her, but she’s a quality player,” he said. “I’m putting a lot on her shoulders and she’s running with it.”

Elma’s Jillian Bieker, right, and Montesano’s Madi Campbell battle for the ball near the sidelines in the second half of a match on Tuesday in Elma. (Hasani Grayson | Grays Harbor News Group)

Monte (7-2, 3-0) pulled even before halftime with a goal in the 29th minute from midfielder Brooke Streeter. Ayres set up the game-tying goal with a pass that found Streeter just outside the box to even the score at 1-1.

The Bulldogs didn’t waste much time untying the contest in the second half as Ayres scored in the 46th minute off an assist from Streeter.

Later in the half, Streeter found Ayres on a through ball that allowed Ayres to streak past the Elma back line and beat keeper Paige Knutson one-on-one in the 53rd minute, giving Monte a 2-1 lead.

Bulldogs head coach Fidel Sanchez said improved passing in the second half allowed them to pull ahead.

“Our midfield took over and we were moving the ball better than we did in the first half,” he said. “In the first half, we couldn’t get settled in as much as we wanted to. The second half was much better. We moved the ball up the middle to get quality shots on goal.”

All league matches carry a certain weight, but Tuesday’s match had an extra energy around it being an East County rivalry match.

Sanchez said he could tell that Elma was playing with a point to prove.

“I think in a rivalry game, against a very motivated Elma team, it was going to be one of those games where we have to get organized and get our things in order,” he said. “Elma played us tough and I’m glad they played us tough. It should wake us up a little bit.”

Montesano turns right around to take on Raymond-South Bend on Wednesday at 7 p.m in Montesano.

Elma takes the field at home on Thursday with a 7 p.m. game against a winless Forks team.

Despite the loss, Valentine was pleased with how his team played competitively against a Bulldogs team that is currently tied for the league lead.

“I’m really happy with how hard they worked and how they played,” he said.”They kept it compact and did what I wanted 100%.”

Montesano 1 2 – 3

Elma 1 0 – 1

Top Players: Elma – Bieker (G, 13th minute); Montesano – Ayres (2 G, 46th, 53rd minute); Streeter (G, 29th minute)

Tumwater 5, Aberdeen 0

Aberdeen missed a golden opportunity to climb the ranks of the 2A Evergreen League as the Bobcats lost 5-0 to Tumwater on Tuesday at Stewart Field in Aberdeen.

Having won four of its past five games, Aberdeen (5-3, 2-1 Evergreen 2A) played what Bobcats head coach Larry Fleming called a “sub-par game.”

Tumwater (7-1, 3-0) scored two goals in the first half and three in the second to cruise to victory.

“The girls learned the hard lesson about constantly making the little mistakes against a good team,” Fleming said. “Everyone had equal blame for the loss, including the coaching staff. We will do a better job getting our team prepared for Thursday.”

The Bobcats will have to lick their wounds before facing Black Hills in a battle for second place at 7 p.m. on Thursday at Black Hills High School.

Aberdeen’s junior varsity team lost to Tumwater JV 4-0 on Tuesday.

Tumwater 2 3 — 5

Aberdeen 0 0 — 0

— Ryan Sparks, Grays Harbor News Group

Hoquiam 3, Raymond-South Bend 2

Hoquiam held off a late rally from Raymond-South Bend as the Grizzlies held on for a 3-2 victory on Tuesday in Raymond.

Hoquiam (3-5-1, 1-2 Evergreen 1A) jumped out to an early lead when Sadie Carlyle took a pass from Taylor Strom and slotted a shot through the Raymond-South Bend keeper’s legs for a goal in the fifth minute.

Carlyle was at it again just a couple of minutes later, taking a pass from Tauni Hilliard at the top of the 18-yard box and ripping a shot into the back of the net for a 2-0 Hoquiam lead in the seventh minute.

Early in the second half, Carlyle completed the hat trick when she scored in the 41st minute off an another Hilliard assist.

But Raymond-South Bend responded with goals in the 65th and 69th minute to cut the deficit to 3-2 late in the contest.

Hoquiam’s defense held, turning back late RSB chances to pick up the league victory.

“Tonight’s big focus was on execution and cleaning up some technical issues,” Hoquiam head coach Drew Grannemann said. “We made some improvements on possession, passing, finishing and defensive shape. Now we need to find a way to keep improving night after night.”

Hoquiam hosts Tenino at 7 p.m. on Wednesday while Raymond-South Bend (2-6, 1-2) takes on Montesano at 7 p.m. on Wednesday at Jack Rottle Field.

Hoquiam 2 1 — 3

Raymond-South Bend 0 2 — 2

Top Players: Hoquiam — Carlyle (3 G, 5th, 7th, 41st minute); Hilliard (2 A), Strom (A)

— Ryan Sparks, Grays Harbor News Group

COLLEGE SOCCER

Centralia 2, Grays Harbor 0

Coming off a whirlwind of a week, the Grays Harbor women’s soccer team allowed two first-half goals in a 2-0 loss to Centralia on Tuesday at Stewart Field in Aberdeen.

Cenralia’s Erin Connally scored an unassisted goal in the first minute of play and Chloe Narolski made it a 2-0 game with a goal in the 31st minute.

Grays Harbor, which had former head coach Alan Carloza step down followed by a forfeit on Saturday, had two shots to eight for Centralia.

The Chokers (0-10-1, 0-8 NWAC West) host Highline at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday.

Centralia 2 0 — 2

Grays Harbor 0 0 — 0

— Ryan Sparks, Grays Harbor News Group