Men’s Soccer Plays Tight Early vs. Lakeridge, Falters Late

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The Canby men’s soccer team had just one game on the schedule this week after being blessed with an off-day — but it was a doozy: A home matchup against the undefeated, No. 2-ranked Lakeridge Pacers (9-0-1, 7-0-1 Three Rivers League).

The Cougars (1-8, 1-6 TRL) fought valiantly against the best team in the Three Rivers League, but ultimately fell, 0-4.

The first half of the game was a close battle where neither team gained control for the first 25 minutes. Senior goalie David Villages masterfully stopped several Pacer opportunities before Lakeridge finally broke through in the 28th minute, when a ball bounced off the crossbar before being pushed through by the Pacers to take a 1-0 lead.

Canby trailed 1-0 at the half, which in itself was an impressive feat against Lakeridge — which has outscored opponents 34-8 so far this season. In their last meeting, the Cougars gave up six goals in a game that got out of hand quickly.

This time around, the defense stepped up, anchored by star midfielder Sammy Barajas-Silva. However, the Pacers locked down the Cougar attack. Canby was unable to generate any real opportunities for the entire game.

The defense was able to hold firm for only so long against the ferocious Pacer front line. Lakeridge scored off of a free kick only four minutes into the second half, and then punched in two more midway through the half to walk home with a 4-0 victory.

Canby will try to get back on track by beginning a three-game road trek next week, starting with Tualatin (6-3-1, 5-2-1 TRL) on Monday and Lake Oswego (3-7, 2-6 TRL) on Wednesday.

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