LAKE STEVENS Two late-game yellow cards against M-P werent enough to stop the Tomahawks from defeating Lake Stevens on the Vikings turf Sept. 13.
The Tomahawks won with the games lone goal by senior Kassandra Riozzi.
In the 73rd minute, freshman forward Krista Riozzi collided with a Viking defender to draw a yellow card. About two minutes later, senior Tanessa Williams got one of her own.
Both times, M-P was able to hold off the Viking offense on their ensuing kick. While he made clear he prefers a clean game, coach Geoff Kittle said the yellow cards were a sign of how hard the girls were working.
Our cards were our girls playing aggressive, Kittle said. Its something we work on, playing aggressive. Were tightening up each game.
Kassandras goal came in at the 28-minute mark. The first half saw the Tomahawks playing a lot of defense, but that changed in the second half. Until a late-game surge by Lake Stevens, M-P controlled the second half of the game.
In the final 10 minutes, both teams turned it up a notch. Around 71:19, Lake Stevens began threatening, and a minute later, they lured goalkeeper Skyler Peterson out of the net. Luckily, junior Katie Hughes was there for the block.
It was a lone defensive mistake in a standout night for the senior goaltender. Peterson had about a half-dozen saves, many of them in dramatic fashion, in the shutout game.
It always feels good beating Lake Stevens, Peterson said after the game. She added of the feeling of defending the net, It was stressful with only a one-goal lead.
Kittle credited Peterson and the Tomahawk bench for a great performance against Lake Stevens.
I know the girls really cared about this game because of the rivalry with Lake Stevens, he said. We just kept them from getting opportunities.
After a 0-2 start to the season, the Tomahawk girls soccer team has rebounded with three straight wins, all by a goal, catapulting them out of the bottom of the conference. Their two losses were to undefeated Snohomish and Everett teams. With a win Sept. 15 over Monroe, M-P has sole possession of third place in Wesco North.
This early in the season, third place is a tenuous position to be in, but the upcoming schedule looks good for Marysville. M-P has as many wins as their next three opponents Cascade, Arlington and Oak Harbor and in October, five of their seven games will be at home.
Still, the teams goal for the season is relatively modest to win two out of every four games. They figure its a record that can get them into the postseason.
Were now just focused on the next game, Kittle said after the win at Lake Stevens. I thought it was a great game that took heart from every girl.