The Fortuna Huskies broke a tie atop the conference standings with a 1-0 win over McKinleyville in girls soccer on Tuesday.

The victory, coupled with Eureka’s 1-0 loss to Arcata, lifted the Fortuna girls into sole possession of the Big 4 lead almost halfway through the conference schedule.

But it wasn’t without some controversy.

The Mack girls turned in a strong performance and appeared to have broken the deadlock when the always dangerous Grace Pimentel netted from the edge of the penalty in the opening half.

But the goal was disallowed on an offsides call, a decision the McKinleyville coaches felt was clearly the wrong call and a decision that could be very costly in what appears to be a wide-open race for the conference championship. 

Through the opening four rounds of conference action, all four teams have dropped points in at least half of their games.

“In a league that is so sporadic and all over the place, points in one game might really matter,” McKinleyville head coach Adam Canepa said. “It’s just unfortunate. It’s super disappointing.”

The Huskies would go on to score the winning goal just 10 minutes from time to secure both points and move clear of the chasing pack.

The Panthers, to their credit, did not appear to allow the first-half disappointment of the disallowed goal affect them and played tough for the entire game.

“We played really well. I’m proud of them,” McKinleyville assistant coach Barbara Clucas said. “They stayed strong. I think we really dominated the game.”

Tayla Fontaine scored the only goal of the game for the Huskies, off an assist from Brooklyn Gonzalez.

The Fortuna players grew into the game.

“The first half we played flat footed and it took us a while to get going,” Fortuna head coach Arnulfo Aguirre said. “The second half was stronger for us. We moved the ball better.”

Both coaches praised the performance of Taylor Wade, who continued to impress in goal for the Panthers, as did Pimentel, who had an “excellent game” in midfield, as well as forward Emily Mathers.

“The whole team played well,” Clucas added. “I thought it would have been our best game of the season. They did so well. I was really impressed with how they handled (the disappoint of the disallowed goal).”

“It was hard to break down the Mack defense, and their goalie had a great game,” Aguirre added. “Overall, I’m proud of the team and we’re moving in the right direction.”

The Arcata girls, meanwhile, also won a tight game against their biggest rivals and moved into second in the standings, just one point behind the Huskies.

It was a good team performance by the Arcata girls, with Zalayshia Velazquez and Melody Arguelles Diaz particularly key.

Velazquez netted the only goal of the game midway through the second half, with Gabby Cavinta playing a big role in the build up on her return from an injury layoff.

Cavinta sent a perfect low cross to Velazquez, who finished the play beautifully with a one-touch strike into the back of the net.

Arguelles Diaz also came up big late in the game when she saved a penalty kick to help secure the victory.

The Arcata defense of Aleta Stubblefield, Luciana Buchheister, Amiable Miranda and Vivian Adams — a back line that represents all four grades — helped secure the clean sheet with a “a balanced and composed” performance, according to the coaches.

In midfield, senior Jada Lusk “seemed to be everywhere at once, breaking up plays, winning challenges, and helping control the tempo in the midfield,” the coaches added, alongside teammate Ada Kinziger, who “had a stellar performance, connecting passes and helping transition play smoothly from defense to attack.”

The coaches added that “the Tigers demonstrated resilience and teamwork, showing they’re beginning to find their rhythm as a squad.”

The win was the second straight in conference play for the Tigers, who stretched their unbeaten run in the Big 4 to three straight.

The win also avenged a conference-opening loss to Eureka.

The Eureka girls, who have not won a Big 4 game since that opener, dropped to third in the standings.

No stats or coach’s feedback were available for the Loggers.