CORRECTION: The team the Othello Huskies faced on Thursday Oct. 2 was the Selah Vikings. The Huskies Head Coach is corrected to Victor Quiroz.

OTHELLO – On Thursday, the Huskies (3-7-1) were defeated 3-1 at home by the Selah Vikings. Despite the loss, Huskies head coach Victor Quiroz said he was proud of the way his players fought to the end on the pitch.   

“I think my girls played well,” Quiroz said. “For any team to go down 2-0, it's easy to hang their heads, but these girls came right back a minute after and scored. These girls battled. I think they played really well.”   

In the first half, the Huskies had control of the ball for the first few minutes, but Selah's defense fought off any offensive advances. The Vikings muscled control of the ball from the Huskies and moved into their end of the field before scoring their first goal of the game. 

For the remainder of the half, the Huskies held off the Vikings from scoring another goal. The Huskies trailed 1-0 at halftime. Heading into the second half, Quiroz urged his players to take more control of the ball.   

“They were beating us to the ball every time, the ball (would be) in the air and we were kind of just watching, and they were jumping the balls, and we weren't jumping passes,” Quiroz said.   

The Huskies came out in the second half more aggressively in ball control. However, the Vikings found themselves in close range of the net and capitalized by scoring their second goal of the game and taking a 2-0 lead.   

However, the Huskies responded quickly within a minute after Mya Rivera dribbled the ball through traffic to score and cut the lead to 2-1.   

“She plays everywhere. She does well pressuring players and she's really good at winning balls, she plays in that wing spot, and she plays striker. So those positions are the attacking positions. She's a good attacking player, she brings that grit, and she brings that physicality to our team,” Quiroz said.   

Within minutes, the Huskies found a spark and the Vikings found themselves in a battle they had not seen yet in that game. The Huskies almost capitalized on another scoring opportunity, but the Vikings sent the ball away.   

Soon after, the Vikings moved the ball into close range of the goal and scored their third goal of the game. The Huskies could not respond in time and were defeated at home 3-1. Despite the loss, Quiroz said his players showed a lot of grit and passion against the Vikings.   

“I think for any team to go down 2-0, any team can be like, ‘Oh, shoot, we're losing,’ but these girls battle. They battle every game. That shows what kind of players these girls are,” he said.   

Going forward the Huskies still have Rivera, who Quiroz calls a luxury to have given her ability to play in different spots of their formations.   

“The last couple games, we've only had like 12 players. It's cool to have her move around and fill in spots for other for other players. But for her to have that (versatility) is a luxury,” Quiroz said.   

Quiroz remains confident in his players' ability to turn their season around.   

“It's within themselves. I told them, ‘Hey, your mentality is going to determine how you play. If you come in with a mentality that you're going to win and you're going to play well, then that's probably what's going to happen,’” he said.   

The Huskies return to the field Oct. 7 to host Grandview at 6 p.m.  

BOX SCORE:   

OTHL: 0-1: 1  

SELH: 1-2: 3 

Abigail Sorensen (9) looks for a passing opportunity against the Selah Vikings on Thursday. Head Coach Victor Quiroz said his players played with grit and passion against Selah.

Ezme Perez (19) applies defensive pressure on a Selah player. Head Coach Victor Quiroz challenged his players at halftime to be more aggressive in getting to the ball on Thursday.

Mya Rivera (1) and Ezme Perez (19) celebrate after Rivera scored for the Huskies against Selah on Thursday.

The Huskies’ Brooklyn Hillman (7) advances the ball into Selah territory in their game on Thursday.