By CHRIS CHANCELLOR
cchancellor@auburn-reporter.com
Auburn Riverside forward Cierra Enlow wears No. 3 on her teal jersey, but a different numeral might be more appropriate for her: two.
That is because Enlow followed a season-long pattern with a pair of goals to help the Ravens to a 2-0 win Tuesday night in a North Puget Sound League 4A Olympic Division girls soccer match at Auburn Mountainview.
“Every time I’ve scored this season has been twice,” said Enlow, who attributed her streak to randomness. “It’s weird.”
Enlow, who has a team-high six goals, scored her first on a rebound in the 15th minute when midfielder McKenna Boulet’s free kick hit the crossbar. Defender Taylor Smith then deflected the shot, and Enlow hit it off her left knee and into the net.
At that point, Enlow exited for the remainder of the first half.
After she scored the first goal, she came up and said, ‘Can I just sit out? I’m not feeling too well,’ ” said Auburn Riverside coach Paul Lewis, who estimated that Enlow played 25 minutes. ”I told her after halftime, ‘Do you think you have five or 10 minutes left in you? She subbed in and within like 30 seconds she was under the goal and scored.”
That goal, which was assisted by midfielder Natalie Lake, occurred in a one-on-one situation with goalkeeper Holly Hytrek in the 52nd.
“She very, very fast and she’s one of our best finishers when it comes to one-on-one with the keeper,” Lewis said. “She just puts it on frame every single time.”
Auburn Mountainview coach Joey West, who recently replaced Bryan Winkler when he stepped down for health reasons, said his team has struggled to score goals throughout the season. The Lions (5-5-1 overall, 5-5-1 Olympic) have not scored during their last two matches.
“We played pretty well,” West said. “We couldn’t score a goal. It’s been our issue all year.”
And that was not the only issue that emerged from the match. During the final 10 minutes of the contest, two captains – Auburn Mountainview’s Avery Grant and Auburn Riverside’s Patricia Phithamma – received red cards. Lewis said the NPSL rulebook mandates a two-match suspension for any player that receives a red card. But both Lewis and West planned to appeal the suspensions to the league.
The potential absence of Phithamma presents another challenge for the Ravens, who have battled injury issues throughout the season. Lewis praised the work of Aubrie Bayley, who has transitioned from midfield to outside back because of the team’s injury issues. He also noted that goalkeeper Katelyn Brown, who earned the shutout, shared the position until a concussion sidelined Natalie Raum earlier this month.
Despite that adversity, Auburn Riverside (9-3-1, 8-3-0) appears positioned to clinch second place in the Olympic Division.
“It was a super, super big win,” Lewis said. “It really helps us kind of secure the chance of getting second place.”
