Hard Act To Follow

DAYTON -- It was a historic week for the two Touchet Valley high school soccer teams.

WP had its first tie against a league team since becoming an official program last year. St. George tied the Tigers 2-2 in Spokane on Saturday.

The same day, Dayton won a doubleheader against Northport, winning for the first time in its five-year history against another varsity team. The Bulldogs only beat St. George's junior varsity team last year.

Dayton beat Northport 2-1 in the first game, then 5-2 in the second, leaving the Bulldogs feeling that it wasn't just a matter of luck they beat a team they weren't able to overcome on eight previous occasions.

"As coaches, we feel we have a team that's advancing," Dayton head coach DJ Frame said. "They were just in sync. I hope they learn they have a lot of success that way."

Defensive back Junior Dedloff agreed.

"On Saturday, we had our best season in one game," he said. "We worked together as a team, as a unit."

When the two valley teams met each other Tuesday night, the Bulldogs' fire was still there but they were far outscored by the Tigers who had better ball control, better passing skills and better offensive execution.

WP beat Dayton, 11-1. Adam Strohbehn's lone Bulldog goal came 14 minutes before the end of the second half after Dayton's continued pressure finally broke down the Tigers' defense long enough to score on the otherwise victorious team.

The Tigers' first goal came just five minutes into the first half with Jose Paniagua taking an arcing shot from just outside the penalty box high in the net where goalie Willie Weppler got a glove on it, but couldn't stop it.

Although the Bulldogs seemed hungry for any forward progress against the Tigers, the cascade of WP goals continued unabated and could have been a veritable flood if it hadn't been for Weppler's deft goalkeeping or for the Dayton defense, including Dedloff, Blake Powell and Samantha Harting.

Weppler had at least eight saves during the match, taking it hard in the chest on one occasion while fisting away a goal-bound strike on another.

The Tigers shut down Bulldogs striker Gabe Garcia, who was given a yellow card after illegally tackling players from behind despite repeated warnings.

The dominant WP goal scorers were Francisco Gonzalez, Gabe Escalante and Keven Ortega. One WP goal came from a penalty kick. The Bulldogs never really caved under the barrage of goals, keeping their heads high and the pressure on.

Courtney Fuller, who kept on advancing up the left wing, broke through several times during the second half, only to be stymied by the Tigers defense. But the dam burst when Strohbehn finally managed to outmaneuver the defense.

"It's a win to me," Dedloff said after the game. "We've never scored against WP before. It's a benchmark."