The Ferndale Wildcats will play in a North Coast Section championship game in girls soccer for the third time in four years next week, as they look to become the first program in section history to win a title at the Division 1, 2 and 3 levels.
The Cats, who are seeded No. 2 in the Division-2 bracket, took care of business in their semifinal on Friday afternoon, defeating No. 3 Credo 3-0.
They will play either No, 1 Del Norte or No. 4 Lower Lake in Wednesday’s championship game.
In other NCS playoff games on Friday, the Arcata boys have advanced to the semifinal round for the second straight year.
Barely.
The Tigers opened their playoffs with a quarterfinal showdown against league rival Fortuna at Cal Poly Humboldt’s College Creek Field and won on penalty kicks after both teams were deadlock 0-0 after regulation.
The No. 4 seeded Arcata boys, who are seeded No. 4 in the Division-1 bracket, won the shootout 4-2 and will play either No. 1 The Bay School or No. 8 Fort Bragg in next week’s semifinals.
On Friday night, the Eureka girls edged Fortuna on penalty kicks to advance to the Division-1 championship game after both schools tied 2-2 in regulation, while the St. Bernard’s girls fell 2-1 in overtime to the top seeds at Kelseyville in the other D-1 semifinal.
We’ll have more on the two Division-1 girls semifinals on Saturday.
Arcata’s Owen Ingram made two penalty saves in the shootout against Fortuna to help secure the victory and keep his team’s season going.
It the third third win in three matchups against the Huskies this year, with all three games close.
“Fortuna is a class act,” Arcata head coach John Davidson said. “They played well and had great sportsmanship and I have nothing but respect for their program.
“It was a great representation of Humboldt soccer today in front of a lot of fans.”
The win lifted the Tigers to 18-4-2, while the Huskies closed out 15-7-1.
“We couldn’t find the back of the net tonight,” Fortuna head coach Daniel Holmes said. “We created many chances, but they would not fall.
“We wish Arcata well in their next match and know that they will represent the HDN.”
It was a another good season for the Huskies, who have been the most consistent soccer program in the H-DNL for the past 15 years
“I want to thank all my boys and their families for all they did for our program this year,” Holmes added.
The Ferndale girls, meanwhile, kept their title ambitions on track as they look to follow up on last year’s Division-1 NCS championship with a D-2 championship this year.
And they overcame a slow start on the way to victory.
“In the first half we had a little trouble in terms of connecting passes and were just playing a little slow,” Ferndale head coach Sam Licona said. “In the second half I think we started putting it together and playing one-two touches, and I thought it was a good performance.”
Sophomore Madison Hagemann was instrumental in the win.
The 2025 Little 4 MVP scored the opening goal, dribbling past a defender and finding the back of the net with a left-footed shot that gave the Cats the narrowest of leads at the break.
Hagemann would double Ferndale’s advantage in the second half, with the always-reliable Claire Renner assisting on the goal.
Another sophomore, Macie Wantt, closed out the scoring on a wonderful 25-yard shot that sailed into the corner of the net.
“Probably one of the goals of the season,” Licona said.
Renner, as usual, enjoyed an outstanding day.
“Claire Renner is having a spectacular season,” Licona said of the junior standout. “She was all over the place.”
Hagemann also had a good day and caused the Credo defense problems with her play.
“When she attacks, it very dangerous,” Licona said. “I think she had a great game as well.”
With the win, Ferndale improved to 12-7-2.
The Del Norte girls are seeded No. 1 in the bracket and will host No. 4 Lower lake on Saturday afternoon, with kickoff set for 2 pm.
If the Warriors win their semifinal, they will host next week’s championship game, but if Lower lake should win then the Cats would host the final.
