WARDEN — The Ephrata girls soccer team picked up a strong 7-0 win at Warden High School on Saturday afternoon against the Cougars.

The Tigers missed a shot off the top cross bar just moments into the game, and Ephrata put the pressure on early and often.

Senior Lynette Sanchez opened the scoring on a long shot from well outside the box to put Ephrata in front 1-0.

Freshman Aliya Avila capitalized on a bobbled save to double the lead before the half at 2-0. Sanchez put in a penalty kick for her second goal of the afternoon to open up the second half.

Ephrata’s Julia Davis netted a pair of goals within just a few minutes midway through the second half. Avila added a second goal late in the half before McKenzie Lembcke capped off the scoring, with just moments to play, to give Ephrata the victory.

A Warden goal that would have broken the shutout was disallowed in the second half after the ball was ruled under the goalkeeper’s control. The Tigers held a wide margin in shots and shots on goal for both halves.

Tigers head coach Gary Klepec said he still wants his team to capitalize on more shot opportunities. He said his team had far too many shots off target, but overall he was pleased with the team’s effort.

“We moved the ball pretty well, we passed to feet pretty well, we’ve just got to finish up better,” Klepec said.

He said the Tigers tried some newer players out at different spots in the rotation and got a better idea of where some girls might fit in down the road. Klepec added the Tigers were able to get some goals for girls who might not have scored this season, helping to boost their confidence as the schedule pushes on.

With a younger team this year, Klepec said getting players like Aliya Avila up front is key to build confidence and experience.

Warden head coach Brylee Pruneda said working on building positivity and confidence in her young team is huge this season.

“I’ve told them from the beginning they’re a good team,” Pruneda said. “They beat Moses Lake, they’re a good team, we knew that. But we’re young still.”

Pruneda said she told her team to stick with building that attitude and mindset and continue improving every day.

Upperclassmen like Grace Richins and Arely Rangel helped push the Cougars attack Saturday, and Pruneda said it’s important having that experience in the midfield.

“They control the rate, the speed; they control everything, so it’s very important,” Pruneda said. “We need good midfielders and upperclassmen to lead. And Arely’s not even a senior, so that’s good.”

Moving forward, Pruneda said she wants to focus on improving her team’s “playing to feet” rather than just kicking into space. She said it doesn’t help moving back to grass after two games in a row on artificial turf, but will focus on pass accuracy in Warden’s game against Royal on Tuesday. Ephrata faces off against Cashmere on Tuesday.

Casey McCarthy can be reached via email at cmccarthy@columbiabasinherald.com.