Wolverines end three-game week with one win, two narrow losses

The Wolverines varsity boys soccer team held Ontario’s Tigers to a single goal in the first half during Monday’s, Sept. 12, match in Weiser. 

 Ontario’s Jamis Gonzalez found the net on a penalty kick from the right side of the 18 yard box for the first goal. Ontario added two more in the second 40 minutes, scrapping out a 3-0 win.

 Weiser took five shots in the fast paced game, with Weiser sophomore goalkeeper Diego Delgadillo adding 10 saves to his stats.

 This was the Wolverines second loss to Ontario this season. Coach Kathy Bokides told her team they “played a heck of a game” afterwards on Monday.

 “This was a great game,” she said. “You played hard to the end, and if you remember that first game, they kind of took it easier on us in the second half. They couldn’t do that today. You guys played very well.”

 Ontario is currently ranked seventh among 29 schools in the Oregon School Activities Association’s 4A division, and is at the top of the four-team Greater Oregon League.

 Weiser’s junior varsity team finished their game with the Tigers in a 1-1 tie.

Weiser 3, Payette 1

 Wolverines Danny Clemmer, Alex Magana, and Brian Munoz each netted goals in a 3-1 conference win over Payette on Tuesday, Sept. 13.

 Clemmer (#15) landed Weiser’s first goal in the first minute of the first half, taking a well-placed pass from Alex Magana (#1) and booting it from the left past the Pirates’ goalie.

 Magana hit the back of the box in the ninth minute, moving the ball up the middle from just past the centerfield line, around the keeper, and kicked it by a defender on the right.

 Payette answered in the first half’s 22nd minute, scoring from the left side of the goal, ending the half with Weiser up 2-1.

 Munoz (#8) capitalized on a Payette foul in the 19th minute of the second half, scoring the penalty kick from just beyond the 18-yard line.

 Wolverine goaltender Delgadillo put up 10 saves, and Weiser’s win improved the Wolverines season conference record to 3-0 and 4-3 overall.

 In the 4 p.m. junior varsity matchup, the Wolverines defeated the Pirates 5-0. Dauge McClellan scored a hat trick (3 goals), with Thayn Blanchard and Keller King each scoring one.

Weiser 0, McCall 1

 Leading the conference with a 6-0-1 record, McCall-Donnelly’s Vandals came to Weiser on Thursday, Sept. 15, following a Tuesday game in Fruitland that ended in a 0-0 tie.

 The Wolverines put up 13 shots in the game, but were confronted by a bunker defense in the 18-yard box, with all but one or two Vandals staying out on offense, and eliminating space for Weiser’s offensive attack.

 The score remained tied at 0 for 72 minutes of playing time, with Weiser’s defense sending the ball back to the offense over and over, and plenty of steals both ways, making for an exciting and challenging match.

 With less than 10 minutes left, Weiser fouled within striking distance of the goal, giving the Vandals a shot through a little too much of an opening, and a score to put them into a 1-0 lead.

 The Wolverines fought back, controlling the ball for the last nine minutes, but penetrating the packed defense just wasn’t in the cards that day. Delgadillo made eight saves in the game.

 Weiser team captain Brian Munoz looked at the loss philosophically, “We played a unified game, and now we’ve seen what they do, with nine on defense, one forward, and a goalie. We can prepare on how to get around them, and the next game will be a good one. This just shows it’s a competitive district and the title is up for grabs.”

 In junior varsity action, the Wolverines defeated the Vandals 3-1, with Edgar Ramirez heading in Weiser’s third goal.