PORTLAND – One year removed from a crushing quarterfinal defeat to West Linn, Jesuit's girls soccer team settled the score Tuesday night.
Junior forward Marian Dunne converted a penalty kick in the 69th minute to give the top-seeded Crusaders a 1-0 home win over No. 5 West Linn in the semifinals of the 6A playoffs. It helped erase some of the pain of last year, when Jesuit had the top seed and lost to the Lions 1-0 in a penalty-kick shootout.
“Last year was such a devastating moment for all of us,” Dunne said. “That was the motivation at the beginning of the year, to use that feeling we had in that game to push us through, to get us to this moment, to play them at our best.”
It marked the third year in a row that the teams met in the playoffs. Jesuit defeated West Linn 1-0 in the state final in 2022 on a first-half goal by Dunne.
“This was certainly a match that had a little extra to it,” Jesuit coach Steve Fennah said. “I think it's only natural. Two really good teams going at it.”
Jesuit (18-1) controlled play throughout but was unable to push one past West Linn standout senior goalkeeper Nyamma Nelson, the star of last year's quarterfinal, when she made two saves in the shootout.
The Crusaders got their best chance in the 63rd minute when Dunne pushed forward on the left side and got a clean look from about 12 yards, but her shot brushed off the left post. As the pressure mounted, it appeared the miss might haunt Jesuit.
“I was really frustrated,” Dunne said. “I saw it miss, and I really thought it was going in. In that moment, I knew I should have scored that, but I needed to get back in the game and get this goal for my team.”
Dunne kept attacking, and six minutes later made another run into the box. This time, she drew a foul, setting up the penalty kick.
“I was just searching for that goal toward the end,” Dunne said. “As soon as I felt those cleats on the back of my ankle, I just fell over.”
But making a penalty kick against the talented Nelson is no small feat. Dunne stuttered, Nelson broke to her left, and Dunne slowly rolled the ball into the lower left corner to make it 1-0.
“I played club with Nyamma, and I was afraid she knew where I was going,” Dunne said. “But I watched her PKs, from last season, and I just saw a little step she did right before she saved it. I stuttered, and as soon as I saw her go to the other side, I knew I had her beat. From there, I just passed it.”
Jesuit will play for its 16th state championship when it meets No. 2 Grant (17-0-1), the reigning state champion, in the final Saturday at Hillsboro Stadium. The Generals handed the Crusaders their only loss of the season, beating them 5-1 on Sept. 16 at Grant Bowl.
“They're a really good team,” Fennah said. “They are well organized. They have great team speed. It should be an exciting final.”
The Crusaders believe they learned their lessons from the loss to Grant.
“That was a huge wake-up call for us,” said Dunne, who has committed to Rutgers. “We knew we needed to never be outworked again. Each game we've improved. I don't think we've been in any better form than we are right now. I'm excited to play them.”
The journey to the final has been filled with adversity for Jesuit. Senior Claudia Rose, committed to Loyola Marymount, has missed the season with a torn ACL. Senior midfielder Kaitlyn MacLennan, committed to Cal Poly, suffered a season-ending leg injury at midseason. And Rutgers-bound senior defender Sophia Stiles also was sidelined during the first half of the season.
“Actually, we were excited about having a really big group of seniors, and then the injuries hit during the club season,” Fennah said. “Certainly, it's created some adversity. The youngsters have stepped up. It's really been a transformation since early season.”
West Linn (12-2-4) was hopeful to make up for a semifinal loss to Cleveland last season but was unable to generate offense against the Crusaders.
“Sometimes we were on our heels, but the heart that we brought for this game, we were ready,” Lions coach Madison Gellos said. “Jesuit had a really good game today.”
Gellos said West Linn has enjoyed the playoff rivalry with Jesuit.
“It's been super fun the past three years to be able to play them in such big games,” Gellos said.
Tuesday's other semifinal matches:
Girls
6A
No. 2 Grant 3, No. 14 Beaverton 0: The Generals moved to the brink of their third title in four seasons by blanking the Beavers. Tessa Matteri scored goals in the 16th and 24th minutes off assists from Nailani Soloman. Marley Hunter added the third goal on a free kick in the 54th minute.
5A
No. 5 Wilsonville 3, No. 9 Putnam 0: After a scoreless first half, the three-time reigning state champion Wildcats put away Northwest Oregon Conference foe Putnam. Kate Kleinke scored in the 41st minute, assisted by Camryn Schaan. Justine Sheets made it 2-0 in the 55th minute off a feed from Tegan Waters. Schaan added an unassisted goal in the 66th minute.
No. 7 Bend 2, No. 3 Caldera 1: The Lava Bears came from behind on the road to defeat the Intermountain Conference rival Wolfpack. Caldera took a 1-0 lead midway through the first half on a 20-yard shot by Shaelyn McCarl. Bend drew even about 10 minutes later when Charly Martin scored off a scramble in the box. The Lava Bears took the lead in the 72nd minute when Clara McDonald converted a cross by Alena Goodwill.
4A
No. 1 Marist Catholic 4, No. 4 Scappoose 0: The Spartans raced to a 3-0 lead in the first half and put away the Indians. Libby McLaughlin scored twice and Ella Braunger and Ella Shepherd had goals for Marist Catholic, which had an 18-2 edge in shots. The Spartans, 2022 champions, will play in the final for the third year in a row.
No. 2 La Grande 1, No. 6 North Marion 0 (OT): Rowan Evans scored the game's only goal four minutes into the second overtime period for the Tigers.
3A/2A/1A
No. 1 Central Linn/East Linn Christian 2, No. 5 Banks 1: The Cobras knocked out the Braves by outscoring them 3-2 in a penalty-kick shootout. Maddie Duringer put Central Linn ahead 1-0 in the sixth minute, but Banks drew even in the 49th minute. Freshman goalkeeper Hazel Huxford had three saves in the shootout for Central Linn, including the clincher.
No. 2 Catlin Gabel 1, No. 3 Valley Catholic 0: The reigning state champion Eagles downed the Valiants in a rematch of the last two state finals. Annika Sirtori scored off an assist by Alana Hill in the 11th minute and Sydney Perlewitz recorded the shutout, making four saves.
Boys
6A
No. 4 McMinnville 2, No. 8 Grant 1: Jose Farias found the net twice as the Grizzlies earned a spot in the final for the first time in eight years. Farias scored early in the first half for a 1-0 lead, and after Grant pulled even in the 30th minute, Farias got the go-ahead goal midway through the second half.
No. 3 Jesuit 2, No. 7 McNary 1: The Crusaders got first-half goals by Vala Saghafi and Diego Nieves to advance. McNary's Jay R Flores scored his 33rd goal of the season in the closing minutes.
5A
No. 1 Summit 3, No. 5 Woodburn 1: The Storm advanced to its fifth final in six years by beating the Bulldogs. Woodburn's Diego Albizo made it 1-0 in the sixth minute, but Summit's Evan Kapsa scored off an Avery McRobie indirect kick in the 29th minute to make it 1-1. Will Newton and Kade Roskowski scored unassisted goals in the 36th and 53rd minutes, respectively, for the Storm, which is going for its third title in four seasons.
No. 2 La Salle Prep 2, No. 6 Wilsonville 1: Vance Sheffield's goal in the 63rd minute, off an assist by Emmet Bregoli, was the difference as the Falcons defeated the Northwest Oregon Conference rival Wildcats. La Salle Prep took a 1-0 lead in the 16th minute on a goal by Luka Skoro, assisted by Quentin Torbert. Derek Garcia pulled Wilsonville even in the 51st minute. Sheffield's goal was the 101st of his career.
4A
No. 4 Henley 2, No. 1 Stayton 1: The Hornets stunned the top-seeded Eagles. Brian Leon put Henley up 1-0 in the 19th minute, but Stayton quickly equalized on a goal by Johnny Garcia. Michael Ruelas provided the go-ahead goal in the 59th minute.
No. 2 North Marion 2, No. 3 Crook County 1: Juruen Delgado scored off a corner kick in the 61st minute to lift the Huskies over the Cowboys. North Marion took a 1-0 lead in the 22nd minute when Marcos Mejia converted a header off a corner kick. Crook County's Noah Oelkers made it 1-1 in the 55th minute.
3A/2A/1A
No. 1 Catlin Gabel 3, No. 12 Blanchet Catholic 0: The Eagles got a first-half goal from Giancarlo Rendon Benitez and second-half goals from Leon Liu and Charlie Nemecek to subdue the Cavaliers. Levi Whalen Stewart had two assists and Finn Hough had one assist.
No. 2 Oregon Episcopal 1, No. 3 Westside Christian 0: The Aardvaks eliminated their Special District 1 rival, getting a goal from Shay Doshi in the 33rd minute.
