Salmon Bay FC Plays to 1-1 Draw With Portland Cherry Bombs FC
By Charles Hamaker
Seattle, WA - Salmon Bay FC’s path to a Northwest Division title got a lot harder this afternoon, following a 1-1 draw against the Portland Cherry Bombs FC in front of a packed house at Interbay Stadium. The defensive fortitude of the Cherry Bombs held the Salmon Bay attack from finding a goal in the first half, but a few substitutions at the midway point gave them an edge quickly, as Morgan Manalili pounced on a loose ball to break the deadlock. The home side was feeling good for the moment, but the tide changed not too long after as a Tess French goal into the top corner equalized, and the even terms were never broken after that.
Stalemate to start
The first half of this match at Interbay under overcast Seattle skies saw a somewhat surprising scoreless 45, as a very potent Salmon Bay attack couldn’t crack a Portland defense that posted consecutive shutouts coming into today’s match.
The Cherry Bombs had a few half-chances within the first 15 minutes of this contest, but didn’t do much on the home side of the field after that, slowing the match down to a pace that they wanted. It was somewhat similar in that regard for Salmon Bay, but with their two chances providing a bit more quality. Ginny Lackey sent a through ball into the final third for Chloe Seelhoff within the first three minutes of the contest, but her attempt in the 18-yard box was off to her left and didn’t force goalkeeper Emma Cameron to make a save.
In the 18th minute, a Salmon Bay corner presented another near miss, as defensive midfielder Rachel Reitz connected with the cross into the box on a header, but her attempt went to Cameron’s right-hand side and out of danger.
A Ginny Lackey shot from outside the box created the only real save that Cameron had to make for the Cherry Bombs, and the rest of the half was quiet in the attacking department. Both teams swapped possession, but nothing dangerous for either side was created.
The halftime scoreline played exactly into what Portland wanted and against what Salmon Bay was trying to do, prompting the Cherry Bombs’ bench to show some enthusiasm when the whistle blew for the break.
Getting on the board, but no winner found
The second half of this contest did see Salmon Bay’s electric attack get on the board, but just once and swiftly after the break. Morgan Manalili and Maya Loudd subbed on at the midway point for Chloe Seelhoff and Juju Barker, with the former getting the home side on the board.
Salmon Bay came out of the break firing and looking to break the deadlock, with Manalili doing just that. In the 49th minute, U’i Kaaihue crossed a ball into the box looking for Ginny Lackey, who was quickly pressured and couldn’t get any sort of attempt towards on net.
With Cherry Bombs defenders surrounding Lackey, the ball lay freely in the box for the taking before a Portland player tried to poke it out of harm’s way. There wasn’t enough power behind the effort, and Manalili stepped up to take a hard right-footed shot. Cherry Bombs goalkeeper Emma Cameron made a leaping effort but couldn’t make the stop, getting Salmon Bay on the board.
The home side was nearly able to double their lead just six minutes later, as a drop pass at the top of the 18-yard box from the University of Washington alum Ameera Hussen to Kaaihue resulted in a hard line drive of a shot, but the effort sailed just over the crossbar for a goal kick.
The tide of this match turned in the 61st minute, with the Cherry Bombs providing persistent pressure after conceding. Portland halftime sub Logan Russo took a hard shot on a ball that Salmon Bay defender Maya Loudd had tried to clear, a cross in from distance, but goalkeeper Blayke Warner made a leaping palm save to force a corner. Another potentially dangerous shot came on that corner, with Quinn Cornog getting free space just within the 18-yard box, but her attempt was pressured and went high off a deflection.
The two Cherry Bombs corners presented potential danger for the home side, but Salmon Bay was able to hold onto its lead temporarily. Portland kept up its pressure and forced a turnover when defender Maya Loudd was trying to build from the backline; Russo intercepted a pass and found teammate Olivia Bariao-Arce. The Colorado Mesa forward brought the ball to the edge of the box before dumping it off to winger Tess French.
French dribbled her way back to the center of the pitch and ripped a left-footed shot that nestled itself into the top corner to equalize in the 63rd minute, just out of the reach of Warner. It was a bit of a surprise for Portland to get on the board, considering they came into the match having scored just one in their first three matches of the year.
Throughout the remainder of the second half, Salmon Bay pressed to find the necessary go-ahead goal, but failed to break the deadlock a second time. The pressure from the home side created some potentially dangerous moments for them, with the Cherry Bombs looking to find a shocking second goal, but Portland failed to capitalize on any real mistakes.
Plenty of possession in the final third for Salmon Bay in the dying moments of the match created a sense of hope for those in attendance that there would be a dramatic winner, but strong defending from the Cherry Bombs ensured that there was not going to be a hero, and instead a split point result.
This is a tough result to take for Salmon Bay, as it means that their path to a Northwest Division title is now out of their hands. Salmon Bay came into this contest with a match in hand over the West Seattle Rhodies, who currently sit atop the division and the USL W League power rankings, but failing to collect all three points makes things harder. If Salmon Bay is to win the division, it will require the Rhodies to drop points in a match outside of the meeting between the two clubs on June 17th, which the Coho will need to win as well.
What’s next?
Following this afternoon’s draw, Salmon Bay FC has just under a week to prepare for their next contest, another home match as they’ll play host to FC Olympia. It’s another clash against Olympia, after Salmon Bay opened the season against them with a 4-0 road victory back on May 15th. FC Olympia has suffered some thumping losses this season, including that defeat to Salmon Bay, and two ugly losses (6-0 in the season opener and 7-0 two days ago), but has kept most of its matches tight, with a narrow draw against division-leading West Seattle.
For Portland Cherry Bombs FC, their next competition is also against FC Olympia, similar to Salmon Bay. That matchup comes on Tuesday, May 9th, with a 7 PM PDT kickoff time at Lents Park. Coming off this draw with Salmon Bay, splitting points against one of the best clubs in the Northwest Division, Salmon Bay will be feeling good heading into their next matchup.
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Check out our previous Salmon Bay FC articles here.
Check out our previous articles with photos by Eric Hiller here, and his portfolio here.
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