QUINCY — The Quincy Jackrabbits girls soccer team (5-0) claimed a 4-1 victory at home against the Ephrata Tigers (0-5) Tuesday evening. This early-season preview for the Battle of the Basin showed highlights for both teams as they head deeper into their seasons. 

“We knew Ephrata was going to come in,” said Jacks Head Coach Javier Diaz. “Rival games are always rival games for a reason.” 

Tuesday’s game was a tight matchup in the beginning as both teams strived to be the first on the board. Ephrata was the first to score with a shot to the back of the net by sophomore Brooklynne Addink.

“It gave us some confidence, which is something we’ve needed for all of our games,” said Tigers Head Coach Gary Klepec. “It started us off right.” 

The Jacks were quick to respond with a goal of their own with Tigers freshman Allanah Longwill coming in with the ball and freshman Marlene Bolanos with the follow-through to tie the game at 1-1. Both teams continued to apply pressure to each other’s goals through the remainder of the half, but neither would score again before halftime. 

“We haven’t conceded a goal (this season) and I think that (Tigers) goal just kind of sparked something,” said Diaz. “The girls came out and they put their head up, just went in and attacked and I think that set us up to kind of calm the game down a bit again.” 

Returning from the break, Quincy came back with a surge of energy and with 15 minutes left in the game had built a 3-1 lead over Ephrata. Jacks’ freshman Allanah Longwill added to this in the final minutes of the game as she scored her third goal of the night to put the team at 4-1. 

“I didn’t really want my attention to be all on goals, I wanted us as a team to get goals,” said Longwill. “I really worked on passing, but I saw those opportunities and I just wanted to take them.” 

Ephrata remained persistent and battled through the final minutes. Though the Tigers had a few shots on goal come close, the Jacks’ defense held strong to win 4-1. 

“I feel like it was a good game,” said Longwill. “My legs hurt.” 

A key takeaway that Longwill said she and her fellow Jacks can take away from Tuesday’s victory is the importance of cheering each other on. 

“I think it’s really good that we cheer each other on and when something happens that’s sad, we build each other up instead of tearing each other down,” said the freshman. 

Longwill said she has confidence that this team has what it takes to make districts and state competitions in the postseason as long as they keep playing their game.  

Even with a loss on the night, Klepec was proud of the Tigers’ effort shown on the field. They came into Tuesday’s game with the plan to utilize their speed to push the ball through and outrun the Quincy defenders, which he felt they accomplished. 

“We played really hard,” he said. “100%, even at the end, we were two goals down and we were still playing. It was fun to watch.” 

Adjusting their formation from previous matchups is what helped Ephrata find their successes against Quincy, said the Tigers coach. As the team makes their way further into the season, he still plans on tweaking their formations and hoping this will push the Tigers toward more goals in the future. 

Diaz said he was very pleased with the grit the Quincy players showed against Ephrata on both sides of the ball. One of their highlights came on the Jacks’ defensive front as senior Aylen Garcia made multiple key saves throughout the night. 

“Ephrata is always going to come here and compete,” said the Jacks coach. “The (Tigers) goalie had fantastic saves, but at the end, Allanah showed up and Marlene too with that follow-through; it was just a team effort on that first goal.” 

This game was not without challenges for the Jacks, as they lost a key player in sophomore Julissa Madera when she suffered an injury. He said there is hope that Madera will make a speedy recovery, but the team will adjust as needed so she can get the rest she needs. 

Tuesday’s victory also built up a lot of confidence for the Jacks but reminds them not to be too comfortable with where they’re at, said Diaz. Early in the matchup he felt the team was rushing, but by the end their confidence came through and pushed them toward victory. 

“We know that the CWAC 2A division is very intense and competitive, so we treat every game as something that we can learn from regardless of the result,” said the Jacks coach. “I think we have a pretty good vision of where the team is at.” 

The Tigers are returning home today to face Prosser at 6 p.m. and the Jacks head on the road to face Brewster today at 4:30 p.m. 

BOX SCORE 

EPHT: 1-0: 1 

QNCY: 1-3: 4 

    Quincy sophomore Brielle Baughman looks to find an opening toward the goal while Ephrata sophomore Maycee Black follows the play and attempts to steal the ball.
  

    Jack’s goalkeeper, Aylen Garcia, sends the ball flying across the field after making a stop late in Tuesday’s matchup.
  

    Aiyana Valle, the Tigers goalkeeper, approaches the ball as she prepares to kick it away after making a key stop in the first half.
  

    Chloe Compton, a junior from the Jacks races ahead with possession of the ball as Tigers junior Jillian Linehan follows behind as they battle along the sideline.
  

    Brooklynn Sieverkropp, a senior from Ephrata, moves the ball down the midfield as she looks for an opening with Marlene Bolanos, a freshman from Quincy, keeping an eye on the ball.