Another Lady Bomber Soccer Sweep - By Easton Praino
On Thursday night, September 28th, the 8-1 Richland Bombers took on the 5-4 Hanford Falcons and won by a score of 2-1. On Tuesday, the Bomber girls came off a 1-0 win against the Kamiakin Braves to sweep them. The Falcons beat the Hermiston Bulldogs 2-1 to stay above .500. Last time these two teams faced off against each other, Richland won 4-1. The Lady Bombers come into this game with the second least amount of goals allowed on the season and a five-game win streak. Richland was missing their star attacker, Bella Bunnage, who was attending her official visit to Eastern Washington University. The Lady Bombers haven't lost to the Falcons since 2017; they are on an eleven-game win streak against the Birds. Senior defender Lucy Howard, who has missed games due to a nagging knee injury from a year ago, shares her thoughts on the so-called rivalry against Hanford, “It feels awesome to know that we can beat our rivals and we can prove that this is our town.”
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| Photo: Metcalf Media (@metcalfmedia_) |
The game started out lackluster from a viewing perspective. Bomber fans are used to the girls coming out firing on all cylinders against Hanford. It was a strong defensive battle in the first half. There were only two attempts on goal in the first sixteen minutes of the game. The teams could barely move the ball past midfield. Both teams were looking very strong defensively. Freshman Lucy Hagler came out in the twenty-first minute and knocked off something on her bucket list, scoring her first goal of the season but, more importantly, her first goal as a Bomber assisted by Niyah Gallegos. The Freshman was ecstatic about it, saying, “I’m pretty excited about it.” Hagler was so excited about it that she could not put it into words; she had been looking forward to this, sharing more thoughts, “It was really satisfying to score after many attempts.” Shortly after, in the twenty-third minute, the Falcons were lined up for a penalty kick. They chose to run out Junior Payton Schmidt to try to tie the game, and Schmidt did exactly what her team needed her to do and nailed the kick into the right side of the goal. The Falcon crowd and players lit up with excitement and cheered hard. The defense continued to be the story of the first half. Junior striker Payton Anderson had many attempts at the goal but came up just short.
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| Photo: Metcalf Media (@metcalfmedia_) |
The second half started out fast. The Lady Bombers came out the gates ready to attack and wanted to get a lead, and that is exactly what they did. Senior Center Back Tiffany Turner was given the opportunity to take the penalty kick for Richland. She nailed it in the forty-fourth minute, doing exactly what the Lady Bombers needed. Turner appreciated the chance to give her team the lead, saying, “It felt great. I appreciate that my team trusted me enough to take the go-ahead penalty kick of the game”. The defense was the name of the game tonight. The Richland students were getting rowdy as well, letting the opposing team players have it, sharing their thoughts on each and every single play that happened right in front of them. They were a major factor in this game. Fan Elijah Vickery explained what it meant to be a part of the rivalry, “We kept the rivalry alive, we made it known that we still care about tradition and having Bomber pride. We showed that we back the green and gold no matter what”. Not much action happened in this half until the end of the game. With about three minutes left in the game, a scramble in the box happened, with star Goalie Alyssa Marsh collecting the ball and putting the final nail in the coffin for the Birds. The Lady Bombers won 2-1 to make their eleven-game win streak versus the Falcons to twelve.
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| Photo: Metcalf Media (@metcalfmedia_) |
Senior Tiffany Turner was a major factor in the win, leading the team vocally and scoring a goal for herself. Turner, a captain for Richland, shared what it meant to have this role, “Being a captain means a lot to me. I’m a loud person on the field, giving directions to the girls from my starting position as a center-back. I’ve wanted this role since my sophomore year, and I'm happy to be able to show my leadership on and off the field”. The Lady Bombers take on 0-10 Pasco Bulldogs next Tuesday, looking to improve to 10-1 on the season.
