Huskies fall 1-0 to Grandview

OTHELLO — A goal early in the second half was too much for the Othello Huskies to overcome Thursday, falling 1-0 to Grandview for a second-straight loss in the Central Washington Athletic Conference.

Grandview came out strong on the attack in Thursday’s contest, keeping pressure on the Huskies throughout the game.

“Grandview was ready to play,” Othello head coach Victor Quiroz said. “They came out and were ready to play, and it showed today.”

The Greyhounds controlled the ball well through the first 40 minutes, limiting scoring opportunities for the Huskies. At the half, both squads remained tied at zero.

“That first half I feel like we touched the ball well. I told them, ‘We’ve just got to finish,’” Quiroz said. “It’s going to come down to whoever scores that only goal, because I felt like it was going to be one of those matches. I told the girls, ‘We’ve just got to keep playing our game and finish on goal.’”

It didn’t take long for the scoring to open in the second half, as a through ball to the center of the field led to a Grandview goal scored by Greyhound junior Lynette Grimaldi in the 42nd minute, breaking the 0-0 tie. It was the lone goal of Thursday night’s contest.

“That first goal came early in the second half, and I think they were just trying to play catch-up after that,” Quiroz said.

Othello’s first shot of the second half didn’t come until the 16-minute mark, though a late surge by the Huskies presented numerous shots on the Grandview net. A cross from senior Naraiah Guzman to fellow senior Ciarra Michel gave Othello a shot to tie the game in the 78th minute, but Michel’s shot missed in front of the Grandview net.

“The last 10, 15 minutes we were touching the ball well and getting shots off, and in my head I’m like, ‘We’re going to score, we’re going to score,’” Quiroz said. “It’s unlucky. We had a shot (that I thought) was going to go in, but we just couldn’t get somebody on it.”

Greyhound defenders swarmed to break up Huskie passes throughout Thursday’s contest, limiting the few chances that Othello had to make runs toward the net.

“It goes back to communication in general,” Quiroz said. “Understanding that girls are going to be there, and just calling for balls – I felt like it was too quiet out there. Just have each other’s back. There was pressure and nobody would call it, I felt like the the communication aspect was vital. That’s going to be important going forward.”

Othello, now 5-4 ahead of Saturday’s contest against Selah, travels to Moses Lake at 7 p.m. Tuesday.

“We’ve got to trust each other more,” Quiroz said. “Trust our forwards, trust the whole team.”

Box score

GRV: 0-1 0

OTH: 0-0 0