CHS soccer opens GNL play with loss to Pullman

The Cheney High School boys soccer team started the Great Northern League at home with a 2-1 loss against Pullman on March 17.

"Going into the game we knew that Pullman was going to be big, fast and strong," head coach Rene Caro said in an email. "The first 20 minutes of the game only served to prove that right. Pullman pressed high and did very well against us in the opening half of the first period. However, we were able to weather the storm and shift attention to their half through good possession and the use of our wingbacks, freshman Dawson Heuett and junior Chayce Crawford."

At halftime, the Blackhawks and Greyhounds were tied at 0-0. Within three minutes into the second-half, junior midfielder Sam Fix scored from 30 yards out to give Cheney the lead.

But in the last 15 minutes of the game, Pullman found the back of the net twice, with the last one coming in the final minute of regulation.

Cheney had four shots on the day while the Greyhounds had eight. Senior goalkeeper Dalton Mauzay collected four saves.

"Overall, the team looks great," Caro said. "We have nothing to be ashamed of after this game. I couldn't ask for more from our boys, they played an excellent game. It hurts to lose a game the way that we did but, at the end of the day, we have 11 more games ahead of us. We will prepare for our next game, at Clarkston, and look to bounce back with a win."

The Blackhawks also had two other games prior to the GNL matchup during the week. The first one was on March 13 against University, where Cheney ended regulation with a 1-1 tie against the Greater Spokane's 4A school thanks to a goal from senior Gabe Hemenway from the 18-yard box.

The Blackhawks lost in a shootout for the second game in a row 2-1.

"This game proved that we can hang with better-organized teams," Caro said. "In my opinion, this team was not only better organized. They had more talent across the board. As a team, offensively, we were able to get things going for us. However, we still didn't execute as well as we should have."

"We were able to take their playmaker out of the equation and put them on their heels for most of the second half," Caro added.

The next game for Cheney was on March 15 at Mead, where the team earned their first win this season 2-1 after yet another shootout. Junior Noah Schorzman was able to score the equalizer 30 seconds into the second half for the Blackhawks. Junior Dillyn Reeder scored the eventual game-winning goal in shootout to give Cheney the 4-3 advantage.

"This game proved that we can come back from a deficit," Caro said. "We bounced back and dug ourselves out of a hole. Our ball movement improved, drastically. Defensively, we proved time and time again that we can rely on our defenders and goalkeeper to keep us in a game. I hope we do not take that for granted and gamble on it. It was great to finally get a win, especially having it be our third shootout in our first three games."

The Blackhawks continued league competition on Tuesday, March 20, at Clarkston. The next matchup is set for today, March 22 at West Valley.​

"Dress rehearsal is over and the real climb begins now," Caro said. "We have lots of work to do to prepare for our competition in the GNL."​

Grace Pohl can be reached at [email protected].