On to state

MATTAWA – Wahluke clinched its spot in the 1A State Boys Soccer Tournament with a 5-0 win over Wapato on Tuesday, highlighted by a three-goal first half and two second-half goals by senior Juan Bravo.

The two teams that make it to the South Central Athletic Conference final automatically qualify for state. The Warriors will face off against Highland in the SCAC final on Saturday.

“We wanted to come prepared, ready to give it all,” junior Brian Herrera said. “We wanted to be able to accomplish this and get ready for Saturday.”

Herrera scored the first goal in Tuesday’s win, picking up on a ball cleared by the Wolves’ defense in the 15th minute. Junior Diego Olivares added another Wahluke goal in the 22nd minute, scoring off a deflection by the Wapato goalkeeper. The third Warrior first-half goal came off the cleat of sophomore Alex Acevedo, who shot to the left of the keeper for a 3-0 lead at halftime.

“You get confident, and you can feel that we were comfortable on the field,” Wahluke Head Coach Cele Lopez said of the first half success.. “Even when we were getting attacked a little bit more, we slowed down a little bit and we looked comfortable. That’s a big help.”

Bravo added his two goals in the 73rd and 77th minutes to push Wahluke to its eventual 5-0 win in the SCAC semifinals. The senior’s first goal came on a shot over the top of the Wapato keeper, and the second goal came on a breakaway.

“It’s probably my speed,” Bravo said. “I think I outran him – I got to the ball and scored.”

Wahluke’s first-round game against La Salle was canceled, which gave the Warriors 12 days in between Tuesday’s win and their previous outing, an 8-0 win over Kiona-Benton City.

“It was really tough, because we had to sit down for a week,” Lopez said. “What we ended up doing was a lot of scrimmages so we can get that energy out off of the kids. I think it worked pretty well, we looked pretty solid today controlling the ball.”

The Warriors faced off against Wapato early in the season on March 18, which ended in a 1-1 draw. With a new roster getting used to new positions at the time, Lopez said the different result on Tuesday was due to players adapting to their roles.

“We were young on defense and we were trying to find those positions,” Lopez said. “Now we’ve filled out those positions, and we look more comfortable. That was a big game-changer – having a full defense and having a good plan.”

The win also marked three-straight clean sheets for Wahluke. Since April 11, the Warriors have only surrendered three goals in an eight-game span.

“It’s the work that we have put in on defense,” Lopez said. “ … it’s showing that hard work pays off.”

Wahluke and Highland match up in the SCAC final at 2 p.m. on Saturday at Royal High School. Highland finished the regular season with a 15-2 record and defeated Toppenish 2-1 in the SCAC semifinal on Tuesday.

“I feel excited and motivated,” Bravo said. “I feel like we can win.”

Even though the Warriors have already clinched their spot in the state tournament, the focus remains on winning a league title.

“I always think that I’m a winner, I want to win everything – I want the boys to take that mentality to the next level, and not just for soccer,” Lopez said. “If you think you’re a winner in life, good things are going to come your way.”

Ian Bivona may be reached at ibivona@columbiabasinherald.com.

Box Score

WPT: 0-0 0

WAH: 3-2 5