The 2016 Columbia River boys soccer team posed for one last photo.
The smiles were strained. Tears still welled in many players’ eyes.
The disappointment was fresh 20 minutes after a 3-1 loss to Interlake in the Class 3A quarterfinals at Kiggins Bowl.
But given some time, Saturday’s season-ending loss won’t be what the team’s 15 seniors will remember most about this season.
“Family, that’s who we are,” senior defender Spencer Baird said. “We gave 100 percent effort no matter if we were down, the last game of the season or the first game of the season. We fought hard whistle to whistle.”
Columbia River (10-6-3) rebounded from two losses in the bi-district tournament to win a first-round playoff game Tuesday in the Tri-Cities. In beating Kamiakin, River notched its first playoff win since 2009 and reached the state quarterfinals for just the third time.
When River took a 1-0 lead just before halftime, the program’s first trip to the semifinals was within reach.
But Interlake (14-6-0) responded with a three-goal blitz over 10 minutes early in the second half.
“Getting here, we wanted more,” River coach Filomon Afenegus said. “If you had told us at the beginning of the year that we’d get to the quarterfinals, I think we’d be pretty ecstatic about that. But getting so close to the semifinals, it certainly hurts.”
River capped an evenly-matched first half by earning a penalty kick when Adam Iglesias Dejesus was tripped just inside the penalty area.
While Interlake’s coaches protested from the sideline, Baird stepped up to the penalty spot and hit a low shot just inside the right goalpost.
But the Bellevue school, which finished No. 2 in the KingCo Conference, tied the match just five minutes into the second half. Daniel Pratt rose above River’s defenders and headed in a corner kick.
Seven minutes later, Interlake took the lead when Austin Ball hit a free kick from 19 yards into the goal’s top-right corner.
Three minutes after that, Tay Aras put Interlake up 3-1 when he scored while on his backside during a goalmouth scramble.
“Right after they scored that first goal, our intensity wasn’t where it should have been,” senior defender Alexander Nielsen said. “Intensity and effort are everything. Our intensity just wasn’t there in that second half.”
Interlake coach Dan Peterson said he didn’t make many halftime adjustments despite falling behind just before the break.
“I told them at halftime that I didn’t think we needed to do a lot different,” Peterson said. “We just needed to take advantage when we had the ball in their end.”
River ended up regretting the corner kick and free kick that led to Interlake’s tying and go-ahead goals.
“Without those two set pieces, it’s a 1-1 game,” Afenegus said. “We were preaching that set pieces were going to be big going into this game. Credit to them, they were able to execute them.”
Immediately after Saturday’s game, River was dwelling on a few plays that ended its season. But those won’t be the lasting memories its players keep.
“I’ll just remember the chemistry between these guys,” Nielsen said. “It’s the most special group of guys I’ve played with in my life. We played our hearts out for each other. This was definitely a tough loss, but I’m proud of what we accomplished this year.”
