A spectacular performance from freshman goalkeeper Ivan Garcia–including two saves in a penalty shootout–wasn’t enough to get No. 1 seed Henley (12-2-1) back to the state semifinals after No. 9 seed North Marion (11-4-2) erased the Hornets’ 2-0 lead early in the second half before winning the shootout 6-5 Saturday.
It’s the second season in a row North Marion has knocked off the No. 1 seed in the state tournament. The Huskies were also the No. 9 seed in 2022 and beat Stayton 3-2 in the quarterfinals.
“I thought that we let off a little bit [in the second half] and the pressure was not the same as it was in the first half,” Henley head coach Lupe Gonzales said.
The Hornets seized control of the game early, scoring twice in the first 11 minutes. Layne Worrell headed in a right-side cross from Michael Ruelas in the 7th minute, and Gavin Knutson got a great bounce on a free kick from just past midfield four minutes later.
North Marion almost answered immediately, with Garcia saving a one-one-one opportunity in the 12th minute and another three minutes later. In the 19th minute, he faced a Huskies free kick from the edge of the penalty area and tipped the shot over the crossbar.
Playing into a strong wind that had been at their backs during the first half, the Hornets struggled to get the ball out of their defensive third in the second half. They paid for it quickly, with Aden Carrillo putting in his own rebound on a one-on-one in the 50th minute and Alexis Lopez Ibarra sending an unsaveable shot from the right wing into the top left corner of the goal four minutes later.
The Huskies continued to apply strong pressure for the rest of the half and may have found the go-ahead goal if not for several saves by Garcia. North Marion, which scored in the 79th minute of its Round of 16 game at No. 8 seed Madras to win 1-0, nearly came away with another last-minute victory, but Garcia saved a rebound off the right post in the 79th minute and watched a Huskies shot bounce off the crossbar with 53 seconds remaining.
In the first 10-minute overtime period, Henley had the wind at their backs again and retook control of the game, dominating possession and generating most of the scoring chances. Even though the wind was at North Marion’s backs for the second overtime period, the Hornets were able to gain a foothold and almost scored their own late winner, but Aiden Hayes’ curling shot somehow bounced out off the backside of the left post.
Garcia saved the first kick he faced in the penalty shootout, but his Huskies counterpart Cole Laninga–a sophomore–answered with a stop in the second round. Garcia came up big again in the fourth round with Henley trailing 2-1, allowing the Hornets to level the score.
Both teams scored in the fifth round, sending the shootout to sudden death tied 3-3. It wasn’t until the eighth round that Laninga made with the game-winning save, sending North Marion to the semifinals and ending Henley’s season.
“Can’t be proud enough of these boys,” Gonzales said. “Without the [loss], I would have been the same proud as I am of them now.”
The Hornets lose six seniors from this year’s team–Hayes, Knutson, Alejandro Baza, Jaden Hernandez, Kasen Schols and Luke Austin–but with players like Garcia, Ruelas and Worrell returning, Gonzales is optimistic about the future.
“We have a lot of really good players we can come back with and make this an even better season next year,” Gonzales said.
North Marion will face the winner of Saturday night’s quarterfinal game between No. 4 seed Newport/Waldport and No. 12 seed Marist Catholic in the OSAA semifinals Tuesday.
