Ephrata clinches CWAC title with win over Selah

EPHRATA — The Lady Tigers used a tenacious defensive effort and a breakaway goal from Katelyn McDonnell to defeat Selah 1-0 and lock up first place in the Central Washington Athletic Conference's North Division Tuesday night.

"It was a pretty huge game for us," said Ephrata coach Hillary Coomes. "We had to come out with a win to stay on top."

While both team's offenses had their opportunities to score throughout the game, neither team was able break through until midway through the second half, when Sandra Ramaker sent a pass ahead to a streaking McDonnell that left the Selah defenders trailing helplessly behind the play. McDonnell drove the ball toward the Selah goal and launched a shot past the Viking goalkeeper to give the Lady Tigers the 1-0 lead.

From that point, a game that had been a back-and-forth contest between two evenly match teams turned in favor of the Lady Tigers. With Selah pressing forward in hopes of tying the game, Ephrata time and time again got behind the Viking defense for dangerous scoring opportunities. Just 90 seconds after Ephrata scored, the Lady Tigers nearly added to their lead on a shot from the left side that was saved by the Selah goalkeeper.

The Lady Tigers could not add to their lead late in the game, however the pressure they put on the Selah defense prevented the Vikings from mounting a substantial offensive attack in the late stages of the game. Because of this Ephrata controlled much of the possession in the last 20 minutes of the game, but Selah was not without scoring opportunities of their own.

With five minutes left on the clock, Selah centered the ball high out in front of the goal, then a Viking forward headed the ball toward the Lady Tiger goal. However, Ephrata goalkeeper Miriam Hall was in position to make a diving save that preserved the lead for the home team.

Hall made several great saves on the night, but her best play of the night came with less than a minute remaining in the game. With the clock winding down, Selah gained possession of a ball near midfield and sent a long pass across the field to the left side that caught the Ephrata defense off guard. The Selah player drove toward the Ephrata goal and launched a bullet of a shot that Hall corralled with a spectacular diving save.

"She has done a phenomenal job … she saved the game for us," said Coomes of her goalkeeper.

Despite a few dangerous scoring opportunities, the Ephrata defense kept the potent Selah in check for much of the night.

"My defense had a big game," said Coomes of her team, which shut down an offense that had averaged nearly five goals per game in CWAC play. "They deserve big kudos for that."

Ephrata opens post-season play at home this Saturday, with the opponent and game time yet to be determined.