Philomath High’s girls soccer team controlled much of Tuesday afternoon’s home game against Newport but couldn’t find the back of the net and was forced to settle for a 0-0 tie that snapped a six-game win streak.
The Warriors (7-3-1 overall, 5-0-1 Oregon West) held a 9-1 edge on corner kicks and had a significant advantage in possession and shots. But the Cubs packed their defense tight and Philomath never adjusted, coach Mat Phelps said.
“Focus on our style of soccer for 80 minutes,” Phelps said of his message to the team afterward. “I think we started forcing a lot of things and playing outside of our style and our system, and when you do that, it’s hard to be successful.”
Newport (2-6-2, 2-3-1) didn’t do anything unexpected defensively, Phelps said.
“They were just packing it in really tight and we didn’t make the adjustment to find each other’s feet and make quicker movements off the ball and just play a little more precise instead of a little more long,” he said.
Philomath had several chances early. In the fourth minute, freshman Lilly Ellis got off a shot that hit the post. A couple of minutes later, junior Kya Bolton got the ball to senior Angelica Morales-Marquez, but Newport’s goalkeeper made the save.
In the 12th minute, Bolton just missed on a header off a setup from junior Bella Nuñez. Sophomore Autumn Wilson, Bolton and Ellis also had looks at the net in the first half.
Newport nearly took the lead early in the second half when sophomore Daphne Grant’s shot just missed wide right. In the 55th minute, Bolton couldn’t sneak the ball in on a rebound opportunity. Junior Reagan Nuño, freshman Sienna Smith, Bolton, Ellis and Morales-Marquez also had chances.
As the Warriors pushed for a winner, the Cubs found more of the ball.
“We had it a lot, but there were times where they won the ball, and I think that was us pressing,” Phelps said. “We committed a lot of players forward to press, try to get a goal, and when that happens, sometimes you’re susceptible to losing the ball.”
Philomath’s defense came up with stops on a couple of Newport chances in the second half.
“We’re not satisfied with the tie, whereas they were very satisfied to get a tie here,” Phelps said. “So we were committing some more players forward because we trust who we have back there to make the stops.”
In the final minutes, Bolton found Nuño, but her shot hit the goalkeeper. Bolton’s attempt from about 25 yards out on Philomath’s last chance missed.
Philomath beat Newport 5-1 on the road earlier this season. The tie extended the Cubs’ unbeaten streak to three games.
The Warriors remain unbeaten in league play.
“It doesn’t yet — as long as we can take care of business, we’ll be OK,” Phelps said when asked if the result hurts them in the standings. “But we’ve got to play our style of soccer.”
Philomath plays at 4 p.m. Thursday at Taft.
Philomath 0, Newport 0
Tuesday, Oct. 13, at Philomath HS
Teams (Record) 1 2 F Newport (2-6-2, 2-3-1) 0 0 0 Philomath (7-3-1, 5-0-1) 0 0 0
JUNIOR VARSITY—Philomath 7, Newport 0. PHS goals — 1, R. Oster (Hernandez), 3rd minute; 2, Hernandez, 16th minute; 3, Mecham (Hernandez), 21st minute; 4, Mecham (Davis), 28th minute; 5, Stewart (Davis), 44th minute; 6, Harrington (Robertson), 52nd minute; 7, Hernandez (Cucci), 74th minute.
