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ONALASKA — It’s been a weird start to the season for the Tenino Beavers.
The win column doesn’t quite reflect that, and neither does the energy in the locker room or on the pitch. But the Beavers have overcome a late summer cold that has recently swarmed the team, multiple injuries and some early season fatigue to start 4-1-1, with the latest win coming in a 4-2 effort over Onalaska Tuesday night.
Junior Kyla Watson shined in her new striker position with two goals and an assist. Watson has always been a wing player and wasn’t always open to playing the nine, coaches said, but her willingness to adapt proved to be rewarding. Her first goal came just two minutes into the contest on a kick that just snuck past Onalaska keeper Emily Hicks’ head, and her second came on a sniper of a free kick in the 47th minute.
“I’ve been talking to Kyla for the last couple of practices, getting her mentally prepared to play some striker for us. It’s a position she hasn’t played before, ever,” Tenino co-head coach Trevor Fetbrandt said. “We thought with the game plan of what we wanted to do tonight that it could really complement her game, especially on the grass fields. She went out there and she saw real quickly how effective she could be.”
Co-coaches Fetbrandt and Dave Montgomery described Watson as a “different person on the soccer field” in the last few months and said she has challenged herself in ways she hasn’t before. Watson thanked her teammates for giving her opportunities to score and for the increased energy after a sluggish past two matches, one a 4-1 loss to Overlake on Sept. 11 and the other a 0-0 draw against Aberdeen on Sept. 13.
“We were just picking each other up. It was really good throughout the whole team with everyone being nice to each other and keeping our energy up,” she said.
Junior Callie Mickelson also got in on the action with a 27th-minute goal off of a throw-in and pass from Watson and a dish to junior Maria Summers in the 55th minute to give the Beavers a 4-1 advantage.
The Beavers have a handful of eighth graders who have stepped into the rotation due to illnesses and injuries. Charlie Wheeler earned her first varsity minutes and first start Tuesday night, and Peyton McCullough, Sophie Espino and Grace Stephens have also seen minutes.
“They brought a lot of energy despite everything going on right now. The fact that they came out flying and had that grit and determination, it was awesome to watch,” Montgomery said.
Tenino keeper Gracie Sweet saved five of the Loggers’ six shots on goal, leading what Fetbrandt called a defensive “masterclass” for the Beavers.
For the Loggers (0-4), Kate Zandell (39th minute) and Kaiyah Sandridge (77th minute) gave their squad their first multi-goal match of the young season against a gauntlet of a non-conference slate. Overall, head coach Christopher Van Clifford was impressed with how Onalaska moved the ball in the midfield against Tenino.
“We only got two goals, but we had a lot of great looks. I was pretty excited with our opportunities. I think it was a pretty even game all around,” he said. “We took those challenging teams because we wanted them to break us down so we could see where the real big problems are.”
Tenino heads to Shelton for a non-conference bout Thursday night, and Onalaska will look for its first win in a non-league contest against Central 2B League for Napavine Thursday night at home. The loss to the Beavers is the first of a four-match home stretch for the Loggers before five of their final eight are on the road.
