Victor Vellasenor scored for EdCC Saturday |
LYNNWOOD – Edmonds CC punched its ticket to the playoffs by
upsetting NWAC No. 2-ranked Peninsula 2-1 Saturday afternoon at Triton Field.
EdCC wrapped up the regular season with a 7-6-2 record against North Region
opposition, good for third place in the standings and good for the third
postseason slot. It’s the tenth consecutive playoff appearance for the Edmonds men’s
soccer program.
On Wednesday, the Tritons head to the campus of West No. 2 seed Tacoma CC,
which is ranked tied for third in the league, for a NWAC First-Round playoff
tilt that starts at 2 p.m. The Titans are 10-3-4 overall heading into Sunday, 8-2-1 in the West. The
Tritons defeated Tacoma 2-0 in a Quarterfinal Match last year.
Saturday’s game was the third meeting in 2015 between the
Tritons and the Pirates. Peninsula (13-3-3, 11-2-2 North) got the best of EdCC
in the other two matches, 2-1 and 4-0.
With three starters sitting out due to an accumulation of
yellows or a red received against Skagit Valley on Wednesday, Edmonds Coach
Ozzy Erkut had to shake up his line up in the do-or-die match against
Peninsula.
Things paid off in the 13th minute when Victor
Villasenor took a pass from Ivan Idro and blasted a shot into the PC net.
Mohamed Elmoghrbi gave EdCC a shocking 2-0 lead just three minutes later, Sanad
Elghanai getting the assist.
The Pirates struck in the 21st minute when Vitor
Maia scored. At that point it looked like it was going to be a wide-open and
wild match. But, despite rain, wind and an attacking Pirate team, that would be
the last goal Saturday.