It seemed like the perfect opportunity to start winning some matches. And it was. For the other team.
The Tacoma Tide scored three times in the first 35 minutes of play to take a 3-0 lead en route to a 4-1 victory over Yakima Friday night.
It was a duel of desperadoes between two teams that two seasons ago had battled for the last playoff spot in the last week of the season and now hoped to start winning games almost a month into this year’s campaign.
Yakima wanted to start their grueling six-match road trip on a positive note and instead, it ended the match with a long team meeting to assess the future of the squad.
Yakima started the team adding some new blood to the backline, with preseason starter Chris Pintone and high-school standout Chris Beehler getting a start. It ended up with regulars Luciano 2010 DaCosta and Ivan Popov on the pitch, along with 2009 veteran Kevin Eggen, trying to solve a constant headache clad in a yellow jersey, named Rafael Cox. The speedy Tide midfielder brought constant danger to the Reds’ backline in the first half.
Spencer Shomaker opened the tab for Tacoma in the 17th minute, followed by Steve Pirotte at the 26th and finally a long-range strike by Daniel Gray left things 3-0. Yakima responded via Abdul Wali Aman in the 39th minute. After setting the preseason on fire, Aman scored its first goal of the regular season when he beat Spencer Richey on a one-on-one, sinking a shot low past the diving Tacoma keeper.
A quarter-hour into the second half, Chris Sanders, a Tacoma sub, closed out the scoring 4-1.
Yakima took a long time in leaving the pitch, huddled near their bench, with coach Alex Silva doing most –but not all– of the talking. Midfielder Jake Sagare, a coach in his own right, also offered his opinion. The talk moved to the locker room, where more players opined.
Whether the talk yields fruit will be seen today at 3 p.m. when Yakima plays the always dangerous Washington Crossfire -formerly known as the Seattle Wolves. The XF were winless until a 7-2 beating over Spokane this week. They sit now at 1-2-0
Yakima (1) at Tacoma (4)
May 28, 2010, Curtis High School Stadium, University Place, Washington.
Reds: Lazar; Valencia, Pintone, Russell and Behler. Prestes, Weslen Silva, Farley and Sagare; Warlen Silva and Aman.
Tacoma: Richey; Conrad, Norton, Knapp and Pirotte; Cox, Tucker-Ganges, Gray and Tagney; Shomaker and Nixon.
Goals: 17′ Shomaker (TT), 26′ Pirotte (TT), 35′ Gray (TT), 39′ Aman (YR), 60′ Sanders (TT).
Recent Comments