Oak Harbor hangs tight in loss

Steve Barker looked up at the scoreboard with a sense of pride Wednesday night.

Not because the Wildcats won.

In fact, they just lost, 2-0, to Marsyville-Pilchuck.

Barker was proud, however, that his team never folded, despite missing nine players from the varsity roster due to illness, injury and spring vacation.

“They played very well,” he said. “Everybody that was out there tonight contributed.”

Oak Harbor, which was without four of its regular starters and five bench players, was forced to bump several junior varsity team members up.

And the lack of experience showed early.

The Tomahawks let loose on 12 first-half shots, while Oak Harbor only had two. Barker praised the defensive backfield of sophomore Mark Ogren, senior Keith Lokkins and junior Brett Manche who, for the most part, kept Marysville from getting easy shots.

Goalkeeper Brian Wandell also had an exceptional game with nine saves.

“Brian Wandell did a tremendous job, holy smokes,” Barker said.

The Tomahawks, however, managed to slip one by Wandell 11 minutes into the game, when on a scramble, junior John Whitfield found a loose ball in the box and punched it into the bottom left corner.

That 1-0 lead held until the 60th minute when Marysville again connected on a defensive miscue which allowed Nickolas Burdett to get behind the defensive line in a one-on-one with Wandell and slip in a goal.

“If there wasn’t a mix up down there, they probably don’t get that one,” Barker said.

Oak Harbor only got one shot off in the second half, as Marysville out-shot them 23-3 for the game.

The loss bumped Oak Harbor to 1-6-1 on the season. The Wildcats should have most of their lineup back when they start the second half of their season Thursday, April 13 at Cascade.

Comment on this story.

COMMENTING RULES: We encourage an open exchange of ideas in our online community, but we ask you to follow our guidelines for respecting community standards. In a nutshell, don't say anything you wouldn't want your mother to read. Please see our FAQ if you have questions or concerns about using Facebook to comment.