During the chaos of homecoming week with tired legs and distractions aplenty, Philomath High’s girls soccer team found exactly what it needed in a 3-1 victory Thursday over Stayton — accountability, grit and a junior willing to put her head on the line.
Philomath’s Angelica Morales-Marquez had every reason to avoid another header. She received clearance to play only recently after coming back from a concussion and fractured nose.
“I was wearing my glasses and I either headed it or I got hit and my glasses got pushed into my nose,” Morales-Marquez said in reference to a moment in an early-season tournament match. “So then I had to get it popped back into place.”
Gallery: PHS girls soccer vs. Stayton (Oct. 16, 2025)
A collection of photos from Philomath High’s 3-1 girls soccer win over visiting Stayton on Thursday.
In Tuesday’s 6-0 win at Sweet Home, Morales-Marquez was told that she was taking too many headers. But none of that mattered when she saw a corner kick by sophomore Bella Nunez coming her way in the 26th minute.
“I knew in that moment, I had to try,” she said.
Morales-Marquez’s header found the back of the net to give the Warriors a 2-1 lead and ignited a second-half surge that improved the team’s record to 11-1 overall and 7-0 in the Oregon West Conference. Stayton fell to 4-6-1 and 2-5.
So, how did the play develop?
“I have no idea,” Morales-Marquez said. “It just happened so fast.”
For coach Mat Phelps, the goal was validation of countless practice repetitions with assistant coach Anton Grube and the players.
“I love it — just that willingness to get after the ball,” Phelps said. “That’s two games in a row we’ve scored a header off a corner kick.”
The Warriors dominated set pieces, earning a 12-0 advantage in corner kicks.
“We know that a strength of our team is winning corner kicks and playing dangerous balls on them,” Phelps said. “To have the willingness of multiple girls on the team go after it with their head is great.”
Morales-Marquez credited the coaching she’s received on proper heading technique.
“I try to remember what Grube and Matt say, which is always to throw your head down,” she said. “Because you don’t want to go up, then it’s going to go over the goal. So I try to hit it head-on.”
The victory didn’t come as easily as the Warriors’ dominant record might suggest. Philomath needed just 2:29 to grab the lead when senior Ellie Dye buried a shot in the upper portion of the net. Sophomore Kya Bolton delivered an accurate pass from the middle toward the left side, finding a wide-open Dye for the early strike.
But Stayton answered when freshman Alhia Ramos capitalized on one of the Eagles’ few offensive opportunities, burying a rebound shot with Philomath’s goalkeeper caught out of position to tie the score in the 16th minute.
“We knew that they had improved a lot from last year,” Phelps said. “They have a new coaching staff and they were ready to come out and play hard. I think it was good for us to have to fight a little bit harder than maybe we thought we had to.”
After Morales-Marquez restored the lead, senior Ana Candanoza provided insurance in the 67th minute with a long-range strike that made it 3-1.
The timing of the test couldn’t have been more challenging with homecoming activities in full swing, a slate that on Wednesday night included a powderpuff football game.
“We’re all just really tired,” Morales-Marquez said. “It’s homecoming week and Matt and Grube got us into saying to have someone to hold you accountable — you know, if you’re not doing your best and someone that you can rely on to talk you up.”
That accountability system, combined with several other factors, has the Warriors rolling through conference play undefeated. The team’s next match is set for 3:30 p.m. Tuesday at home against Cascade.
Philomath 3, Stayton 1
Thursday, Oct. 16 at Philomath HS
| Teams (Record) | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stayton (4-6-1, 2-5) | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Philomath (11-1, 7-0) | 2 | 1 | 3 |
First Half — 1, Philomath, Dye (Bolton), 3rd minute; 2, Stayton, Ramos, 16th minute; 3, Philomath, Morales-Marquez (Nunez), 26th minute.
Second Half — 4, Philomath, Candanoza, 67th minute.
Junior Varsity: Philomath 6, Stayton 0. PHS Goals: Wilson, Phan (Wilson), A. Oster, Robertson, Wilson (Badazadigan), Workman.
