Cavaliers too slippery for the Geoducks

On Saturday, September 17th the Evergreen Geoducks faced the 14th ranked Concordia (Ore.) Cavaliers in their second Cascade Conference match. Evergreen’s first Conference match ended in disappointment, losing 2-1 in extra time to the College of Idaho.    

Under an overcast sky last Saturday afternoon, Evergreen had their work cut out for them. When the match began both sides struggled to maintain their footing. Players slipped every so often, ruining any chance to gain momentum going forward. Once players found their balance the scoring chances started to develop. 

The first scoring opportunity fell to Evergreen’s #12 Kevin Flavin with a shot from distance that tested the alertness of #1 Humberto Soriano, the Cavaliers' goalkeeper. Soriano handled the first shot, but then was tested again. This time Evergreen’s #17 Corey Johnson shot directly at Soriano, who didn’t need to move at all.     

With the Geoducks' barrage on the Cavaliers' goal subsiding, the Cavaliers raised their game by advancing forward to apply pressure on Evergreen’s defense. The Geoduck defense remained strong and their goalkeeper #00 Christian Pettit was forced into a brilliant diving save to keep the scoring even at 0-0.     

However, Evergreen’s defense cracked in the 12th minute from the Cavaliers' pressure that continued to build up. Concordia's Facundo Dipascuale received a pass from Tanner French, who then fired it past Pettit. 

After the restart, Evergreen looked like they would surrender a second goal from the relentless pressure being applied by the Cavaliers, but the Geoducks held their own and looked to equalize.  

A couple shots from distance by Evergreen’s #12 Flavin and #18 Brandon Wood (Coeur d’ Alene, Idaho/North Idaho College) showed Evergreen’s tenacity to fight back.   

In the 19th minute, #17 Johnson played a fantastic ball that opened up the Cavaliers' defense, allowing #12 Flavin to find the back of the net bringing Evergreen back on level terms. It was impressive to see this Evergreen side battle back from being a goal down and withstand endless pressure to score the equalizer.     

But no sooner did Evergreen climb back into the match, they found themselves seeing all their hardwork whisked away, conceding a second goal a few minutes later. Evergreen fouled a Cavalier outside the 18 yard box. The Geoducks took their time setting up their defensive wall for the free kick and the Cavaliers exploited the opportunity, scoring past an out of position Pettit.    

Even though Evergreen appeared somewhat devastated, they continued to play resolutely. However, the Cavaliers capitalized on being back on top and looked to add a third goal.

Once again Evergreen demonstrated their ability to absorb pressure and held the Cavaliers at bay.    

With the first half coming to a close, the Geoducks were very lucky to have kept Concordia out of the net for a third or even a fourth goal. On the other hand, the Cavaliers were unlucky not to score more than two in first half.

When play resumed the Cavaliers shifted into a different gear and started to dominated play once again.   

Unlike the first half, Evergreen’s defense was left at sixes and sevens as they struggled to keep the Cavaliers from scoring their third goal. 

Concordia found their breakthrough in the 55th minute when they won a corner kick. From the resulting corner, Michael Chamberlain scored on a diving header that sucked the wind out Evergreen’s sails. 

After increasing their lead to two goals, the Cavaliers were not satisfied and wanted to go after Evergreen’s defense that was now reeling. The Geoducks' defense was constantly under pressure and never got any breaks. Every one of Evergreen’s attempts to push forward were quashed before they could develop.

Evergreen was able to pull one back when #15 Sam Joslyn fired a shot from distance and beat the new Cavaliers' goalkeeper Scott Gross, who entered play at half time.

Pulling one goal back reenergized the Geoducks, but in the end Evergreen couldn’t find any rhythm in front of the Cavaliers' goal to grab an equalizer.    

The final scored ended up: Evergreen 2, Concordia 3.