Photos by Ray Hamill/HumboldtSports.com

By Ray Hamill — Wednesday night’s game was everything you would expect from a Eureka and Arcata girls soccer matchup out on the field, but a thrilling game was marred by allegations of ugly fan behavior at Albee Stadium.

The visiting Tigers took the lead just five minutes in on an opportunistic goal from Alia Prentiss, and they led throughout, with a well-organized defense keeping the Loggers attack at bay.

But with just seconds remaining in the game, Ginny Brooks netted a dramatic equalizer for the home team. breaking through the Arcata defense after a well-placed Lila Ekholdt pass set her up.

“We didn’t quit,” Eureka head coach Tommy Learmouth said afterwards. “We kept fighting until the final whistle, and the girls were rewarded.”

In what has traditionally been one of the most exciting rivalries in H-DNL girls soccer, this game was a physical and hard-fought affair, with neither side backing down from the challenge.

Afterwards, however, Arcata head coach Patrick Stranahan was upset about the behavior of some of the home fans after two of his players allegedly suffered some verbal abuse.

“I’m totally disappointed in the Eureka High fans and stadium behavior” Stranahan said. “They were so volatile and abrasive, they actually caused two of my players to break down emotionally on the field.”

Two of the Arcata players did break down emotionally and had to be consoled by their teammates on the far side of the field away from the fans.

Stranahan went on to say that some fans in the crowd were yelling personal attacks and illicit language at his players.

“That’s not what sports is about. That’s not what soccer is about,” the coach said, adding that this type of behavior is intolerable at high school sporting events.

The game itself was an intense affair, as is often the case when these two great rivals meet.

It was also an evenly matched game, with both sides creating ample opportunities and both defenses standing firm for most of the night.

In goal, Arcata’s Seri Welsh comfortably gathered just about everything that came her way, including a key stop at the feet of a Eureka striker just moments before the late equalizer.

At the other end of the field, Claire Maples continues to inspire confidence for her defense and continues to grow in stature between the posts.

“I thought the goalkeeping tonight was tremendous,” Learmouth said.

So too were the defenses, both of which were disciplined throughout and hardly put a foot wrong all night.

Simona Khattab, Rogue Russell and Quin Rush-Copple all were outstanding at the back for Arcata, while Eureka’s Payton Goodman, Amelia Staiano and Maia Hales were equally surefooted for the Loggers, especially Hales, who made multiple strong tackles.

“Maia Hales was an absolute rock and a beast in the back,” Learmouth said.

Up front for Arcata, the ever-dangerous Kyla Berman and Zoe Macknicki continually kept the Loggers defenders on their toes.

Berman assisted on the early goal, sending a dangerous cross into the goalmouth that Maples was unable to secure, with Prentiss then jumping at the chance and slipping the ball into the net.

Up front for Eureka, Ekholdt continued to look like one of the most sure-footed players in the league every time she touched the ball, overcoming a hard knock in the second half and turning in one of the performances of the night.

In midfield, industrious freshman Angelina Conant was a constant thorn in the side of her more experienced opponents.

“Everyone that was in the game tonight, they all played so well,” Learmouth said.

The Eureka coach believes this was a pivotal result for his young team.

“We can take a lot of positive energy from this,” he said.

The Loggers are now 1-0-2 in the Big 5, while the Tigers are 1-0-1 in conference and 2-0-1 overall.