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- Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card - Place an Ad Valley&State Backpage O&E Sports Archives Classifieds Faith&Beliefs Obituaries Revels September 20, 2004 Grizzlies upend Tornado By Kevin Goff For the Tidings Eisa Tiaa Toutou's emotions experienced more highs and lows than a roller coaster as he watched from the Ashland boys soccer sideline Saturday. But the final high, a 3-2 overtime victory over Southern Oregon Conference rival North Medford, belonged to the Grizzlies and their seventh-year coach. Joseph Fallon gave Ashland a 2-1 lead midway through the extra session and Fabian Garcia-Flores tacked on an insurance goal to help seal the victory at Ashland Middle School. "Whew," said a relieved Tiaa Toutou. "(The win) will keep us going in the right direction. We made some mistakes today, but it was a great effort." The victory kept the Grizzlies unbeaten at 4-0 and strengthened their lead atop the SOC. North Medford fell to 2-1 in league, and South Medford - the only other SOC unbeaten entering Saturday - lost 3-1 to Roseburg. Ashland used its quickness up front and ball movement to finally break down North's stingy defense. "I think right now, Ashland is the better passing team," said 13th-year Tornado coach Rich Garcia. "It's not bad losing to a team like (Ashland). They're a very skilled team." Fallon's go-ahead score wasn't a thing of beauty, but it symbolized the pace of the rough-and-tumble contest. In the fifth minute of overtime, Ashland sent a corner kick toward a crowded goal box. The ball deflected twice - the last time off North keeper Oscar Benitez's hands - and Fallon emerged from the scrum to hand the Grizzlies the lead from close range. Ashland continued the surge midway through the second 10-minute overtime half when Benitez dove to deflect another Grizzly attempt and Garcia-Flores swooped in to score off the rebound. The 3-1 lead looked insurmountable. There were just over five minutes to play and Ashland had all the momentum. But North wouldn't go down easily. Black Tornado forward James Kidwell lined up for a direct kick with just over two minutes to play. The senior's shot curved over the Grizzly wall and into the upper right corner to cut the deficit to one. North had a golden opportunity to even the game just a minute later, but Garrett Steeley's header from 5 yards out sailed over the crossbar. "We had some opportunities but just didn't take advantage of them," said Garcia. "We played tough, though. I thought it was a pretty gritty effort on our part." The Grizzlies nearly sent the home contingent away happy in regulation, but North's defense held its ground. Ashland outshot the Tornado 10-2 in the opening 40 minutes and 13-7 overall in regulation. Benitez stayed busy turning away shots. The only goal that trickled through was a penalty kick by Garcia-Flores in the 26th minute. "We had a few chances to finish it in regulation," said Tiaa Toutou. "We weren't very patient. That's something we'll have to work on." North Medford moved in front 1-0 in the 15th minute. Tornado midfielder Dusty Andries found space on the left side and lofted a perfectly placed cross into the box. Senior Max Brown leapt and headed in the opening score into the upper right corner of the net. Benitez made two nifty saves on two Grizzly attempts that followed before Ashland answered nine minutes later on the penalty kick. The Black Tornado, which has had sluggish starts the past few seasons, lost four early games last year before rallying to earn a share of the SOC title. "It's still early, but this new schedule doesn't allow for much of a warm-up," said Garcia of the SOC eliminating nonconference games for more league contests. "At least we get another crack at (Ashland) at our place." Girls Soccer At Medford, North Medford picked up goals from five different players and was efficient on offense as it moved to 4-0 in the SOC with a 5-0 win over Ashland. Lisa Louie, Amber Withol and Alex Batzer tallied goals in the first half, while Elly Tucker connected five minutes into the second half for a 4-0 Black Tornado lead. Caitlin Seely scored North Medford's final goal in the 35th minute of the second half. Dacarie Robertson registered two assists for the Tornado and Withol had one. Ashland, which fell to 1-3 in SOC play, hosts South Medford (4-0 SOC) on Tuesday. Water Polo Both Ashland teams swept North Eugene and Cottage Grove on Sunday to improve their records to 4-1 in Southern League action. The girls were led by Ursula Barton's seven goals and five steals on the day and Julia Coke's three goals and five assists. The boys defeated North Eugene, 18-7, and Cottage Grove, 13-6. Matt Lipski had five goals and Geoff Berteau, Andrew Del Carlo and Caleb Salmond each ended with four. At Eugene on Saturday, Barton scored 12 goals over two games as the Ashland girls split a pair of Southern League games at Amazon Pool. The Grizzlies opened with a 17-2 victory over Sheldon and closed out with an 11-6 loss to South Eugene. The Ashland boys also defeated Sheldon, 8-6, but fell to South Eugene, 10-6. In girls, Chani Little added four goals to go with two assists in the victory over Sheldon, while Coke scored three times and had four assists and Hannah Bergstrom contributed three goals and two assists. Corinna Morrison had 11 saves for Ashland. In the second game, Barton scored five times, but South Eugene tallied four times in the final period to pull away. Del Carlo led the Ashland boys with three goals in the victory over Sheldon, while Ben Gossen had three assists, Salmond two assists and Berteau three steals. Against South Eugene, Salmond had three goals, Del Carlo two and Berteau dished out three assists. DailyTidings.com Home Page Valley&State | Backpage | O&E | Sports | Archives | Weather | Classifieds Columnists | Faith&Beliefs | Obituaries | Revels | Subscribe | Contact Us Copyright 2004 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers All Rights Reserved Click Here Site Search: .:Advertisements:. RESOURCES - Mail Tribune News - ODOT Road Cams