Bellingham girls soccer is headed to the 2A state semifinals after defeating Bainbridge 3-2 in the quarterfinals Saturday, Nov. 16 at Civic Field.
Fourth-seeded Bellingham will now face top-seeded Ridgefield at 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 22 at Mount Tahoma High School.
Bellingham and No. 5 Bainbridge were tied with a handful of minutes before regulation ended. However, the Bayhawks earned a corner kick in the 78th minute. The ball sailed over the defense and Beckett Ferry tapped into the net for the game-winner.
Bellingham also scored on a header from another corner kick in the 60th minute to tie the game. The Bayhawks’ first goal came in the 34th minute from Grace Gouran’s 30-yard shot from the middle of the pitch.
Bellingham girls soccer won its state opener and advanced to the quarterfinals, while Sehome lost its opener and was eliminated in a doubleheader Wednesday, Nov. 13 at Civic Stadium.
Fourth-seeded Bellingham kicked off the doubleheader with a 3-0 win over No. 13 Pullman. The Bayhawks will next host No. 5 Bainbridge in the quarterfinals at 1 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 16 at Civic Stadium.
“It felt great because we have worked hard all season and we came prepared,” Bellingham senior Kira Carlson said. “That first district game wasn’t what we wanted in districts. We came back and had something to prove”
Bellingham reached the state playoffs after winning the district consolation championship in penalties. They proved their dominance against the Greyhounds Wednesday, firing several shots and only allowing Pullman to two shots in the game.
Carlson scored the first goal off a corner kick in the 20th minute. Ivy Newell curled the corner kick and the Pullman goalie deflected it. Carlson stepped in and tapped it into the net.
“I was watching for the ball and trying to keep it off the goalkeeper,” Carlson said. “Ivy placed a great ball and I finished it.”
In the 34th minute, Newell scored on a corner kick in a scramble in front of the net. In the second half, Bellingham nearly picked up its third goal in the 54th minute. Newell crossed to Ella Morrow but failed to get a clean shot onto the net.
Both teams struggled to attack as the wind picked up. However, Morrow answered in the 71st minute when Beckett Ferry dribbled down the left sideline and crossed it into the box.
Sixth-seeded Sehome played immediately after and lost 2-1 (4-3 in penalties) to No. 11 Ellensburg.
“This is competitive postseason soccer so every moment matters,” Sehome coach Emily Webster said. “All we can do is hold our heads high. We played a good game but didn’t get what we wanted tonight.”
Sehome missed two penalties, one off the crossbar and one saved, while Ellensburg made four out of five, including Jamison Philip’s game-winner.
It was a quiet first half for both teams until the final few minutes of the first half. Sehome’s Triya Mitchell took a shot against Bulldogs’ Katie Burton. Burton fumbled the ball but recovered before it crossed the goal line.
Ellensburg countered a minute later as Philip scored in the lower left corner. In the second half, Keira Reeves scored on a corner kick header in the 52nd minute to tie the game. Ellensburg had the final chance shortly after but the shot bounced off the left post.
Although the Mariners’ season was cut short of expectations, Webster believes she had a special group of girls.
“They continued to rise,” Webster said. “We have a couple players continuing to play in college and a young group who are ready for next year.”
Nick Zeller-Singh is CDN's sports reporter; reach him at nickzellersingh@cascadiadaily.com; 360-922-3090 ext. 104.
