Pasco boys get shot at redemption against CV

Led by one of the premier front lines in the state, the Pasco High School boys soccer team will try to make some history Saturday in its Class 4A state quarterfinal game against Central Valley.

The Bears knocked the Bulldogs out of the round of eight last year, and topped them in the 2014 and 2015 regional championship games. For Pasco, Saturday’s 1 p.m. match at Spokane Falls Community College represents a prime opportunity for payback.

“We wanted to play Central Valley,” Pasco senior forward Hector Magana said. “We wanted that revenge. I mean, it’s been three times that they’ve beaten us. It’s not happening a fourth time.”

Since coach Matt Potter took over the Bulldogs in 2010, they haven’t made it to the semifinals of the state tournament. It’s a streak Potter hopes to end soon.

“We feel like we’ve gotta win the next game, and I know that sounds cliché,” Potter said. “We’re in the same spot we were last year, and we’re going to go out and look to win the game.”

Losing only three starters off a 2015 squad that ran the table in the MCC en route to its second straight conference championship, the Bulldogs seemed poised early on for greatness in 2016. They have yet to disappoint.

Despite a late-season loss to Chiawana, Pasco picked up its third MCC title in as many years with a 13-1 conference record, and its two starting forwards, Magana and junior Jesus Meraz-Rodriguez, shared MCC player of the year honors.

“I’m pretty sure we all thought we were going to get back here the same because it’s basically the whole team that was formed together,” Meraz-Rodriguez said. “We’re all returners coming back to play again so we thought we had a pretty good shot at state.”

Potter said defending as a unit and possessing the ball well will be critical for his squad to beat the Bears, but Magana and Meraz-Rodriguez would love to steal the show like they have all season long.

“Like Potter says, if the forwards set the tone, the players from Central Valley won’t be able to stop us,” Meraz-Rodriguez said.

Meraz-Rodriguez did just that in the Bulldogs’ opening-round match against Mt. Rainier on Tuesday, scoring two goals in the first 15 minutes to guide Pasco to an early 3-0 advantage. A similar start for the Bulldogs on Saturday could spell trouble for Central Valley.

“Central Valley should be ready,” Meraz-Rodriguez said.

This story was originally published May 20, 2016 at 9:15 PM with the headline "Pasco boys get shot at redemption against CV."