If climbing to No. 1 in the OSAAtoday 5A coaches poll wasn't enough validation for Canby's fast-rising girls soccer team, the Cougars punctuated their improvement Oct. 3 with a 1-0 win over their nemesis, three-time reigning state champion Wilsonville.
Since dropping from 6A to the 5A Northwest Oregon Conference in 2022, Canby had lost all three of its matches against the Wildcats, including a gut-wrenching 2-1 defeat in the state quarterfinals last season.
But with nine starters back from that team – including seven who received all-league honors -- the Cougars are intent on breaking new ground this year. The win over No. 5 Wilsonville was a sure sign that they are turning the corner.
“Us winning kind of proved that they can do what they set their minds to,” Canby coach Dallas Hill said. “They've come a long way over the last few years.”
When Hill left the staff at Wilsonville – where she was co-coach with Alex Boehm for two seasons – to become Canby's coach in 2022, the Cougars were coming off a 1-10-3 season in 6A.
They went 5-9 in Hill's first season and 7-4-6 last year. They are 8-1-1 overall, 3-0 in the NWOC this season, and have designs on winning Canby's first league championship since the program started in 1985.
“We're one of the few sports teams at Canby that doesn't have a banner in the gym,” Hill said. “I think that's a little additional fire.”
Canby returned three first-team all-NWOC players in senior forward Kendel Johnson, junior midfielder Bella Capra and senior defender Sadie Schweitzer. The Cougars also picked up a key transfer in senior forward Fia Swanson, a first-team all-league selection for 4A champion North Marion last year.
Stocked with talent and experience, Canby has proven itself against some of the state's top teams. Aside from Wilsonville, they have defeated 5A No. 7 Thurston 1-0, 3A/2A/1A No. 1 Catlin Gabel 3-2 and 4A No. 2 North Marion 3-0. They tied 5A No. 2 North Eugene 1-1 and lost to 6A No. 1 Grant 1-0.
Wilsonville, North Marion, Catlin Gabel and Grant are the state's reigning state champions. North Eugene was the 5A runner-up last season.
“I made sure that we scheduled a really hard preseason,” Hill said. “At first when I told the girls that was our preseason, they were stoked. They want to play the best teams. They want to rise to the challenge. They've never once been scared to play an opponent.”
Johnson has scored 12 of the team's 25 goals, including two each against Catlin Gabel and North Marion. She had the game's only goal against Thurston.
“She's a very technical player,” Hill said of Johnson. “She's really good at pulling the trigger. She's real shifty, so she'll beat a player and pull that trigger. She's also great in the air. She'll get on the end of everything. The ball drops in the box, she's there. She's the most goal-hungry kid we have.”
Junior midfielder Abella Leder provided the winning goal against Wilsonville, converting off a free kick by sophomore forward Megan Gingerich in the final five minutes. It was one of Gingerich's team-high seven assists.
Hill said the team's winning mindset is in contrast from when she took over in 2022.
“I'm not sure if it's because they were in the Three Rivers League for so long and just got pummeled year after year,” Hill said. “Joining the NWOC was part of it. I remember my first season with them, the first few games, they were like, 'We're getting our butts kicked.' Now it's like, 'We're not getting our butts kicked.' It's kind of an underdog mentality. They want to be taken seriously.”
The No. 1 ranking is a sign of the respect the Cougars have earned.
“I think they feel like that's where they should be, and it kind of confirms that belief,” Hill said. “I think now they're shifting from that underdog mentality to like, 'We have a target on our backs.' They can't afford to let up because every team is going to play them like they're the best team in the state.”
Rams on a run
Central Catholic's girls, ranked No. 4 in 6A, extended their winning streak to seven with two impressive victories, turning back No. 7 West Linn 4-2 on Oct. 1 and Barlow 2-1 on Monday.
Annie Charbonneau scored off a corner kick with 30 seconds left to give the Rams (8-1) the win at Barlow (8-2) in the Mt. Hood Conference opener for both teams. Sophie Naulty had Central Catholic's other goal.
Suzanna Fee scored twice and Katie Berry and Michaela Kriesien added single tallies in the home win over West Linn.
Central Catholic coach Lucas DePinna praised his team for its chemistry and determination.
“It’s a diverse group of ages and grade levels, and you wouldn’t know if by the way they act and bond with each other, and that is special,” DePinna said. “We don’t have to rely fully on the seniors or juniors now. We know we can count on anyone and they are going to be able to perform.”
Other highlights:
Boys
No. 10 McMinnville opened 6A Pacific Conference boys play Monday with a key win, routing No. 3 Glencoe 4-1 at home. It was a big night for Grizzlies sophomore midfielder Edwin Cuevas-George, who scored all four of his team's goals. McMinnville and Glencoe are 7-2 overall. … Westside Christian, ranked No. 2 in 3A/2A/1A, overcame co-No. 5 Valley Catholic 3-2 in a Special District 1 game on the road Saturday. Westside Christian's goals came from Esra Leontescu, Alexis Gonzalez and Andy Wong. … Host Grants Pass knocked off 6A No. 4 South Eugene 1-0 on Oct. 3. Owen Boersma scored off an assist from Drew Townes. …
5A No. 2 Crescent Valley went on the road for a 2-0 win over No. 5 West Albany on Oct. 1. Reese Christensen converted an assist from Seth Schrader and Alex Westberry scored off a feed from Hudson Waddell. … No. 5 Madras (5-2-2, 3-0-2) handed No. 3 Crook County (7-1-1, 4-1) its first loss of the season, beating the visiting Cowboys 2-1 in a 4A Tri-Valley Conference game Oct. 3. … Stayton (6-0, 3-0) and North Marion (7-0, 3-0), tied for No. 1 in the 4A coaches poll, collide in an Oregon West Conference game Thursday at North Marion.
Girls
Unranked Amity stopped previously unbeaten Blanchet Catholic 2-0 in a Special District 2 match Oct. 3. The host Warriors (6-4, 4-0) got goals from Mya Haarsma and Lyliana Rideout and assists from Eliza Nisly and Adie Nisly against the Cavaliers (10-1, 5-1), who had allowed only four goals through their first nine matches. … St. Mary's of Medford (7-1), ranked No. 5 in 3A/2A/1A, also suffered its first defeat, losing 1-0 at 4A No. 6 Hidden Valley/New Hope Christian on Saturday. … No. 7 West Linn (6-1-2) won 1-0 at No. 5 St. Mary's Academy (6-1-1) in the 6A Three Rivers League opener Saturday, dealing the Blues their first loss of the season. …
Caldera and Bend, tied for No. 3 in the 5A coaches poll, met Oct. 2 at Caldera, with the host Wolfpack prevailing 1-0. … Host Crater upended 5A No. 7 Thurston 2-1 on Saturday. … No. 2 Jesuit rolled 5-0 at No. 8 Mountainside in 6A Metro League play Saturday. … No. 4 Oregon Episcopal won at No. 7 Banks 4-2 in a 3A/2A/1A Special District 1 contest Oct. 4. … No. 1 North Marion (4-3, 3-0) and No. 5 Philomath (4-2-1, 3-0) – tied for first place in the 4A Oregon West Conference – meet Tuesday at North Marion.
jerryu@osaa.org
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