TOLEDO — When Toledo and Napavine met last season, goals were almost impossible to come by.
The two sides met twice, once in the regular season and once in the district tournament, but neither team was able to score outside of the penalty shootout that decided the district championship.
In the latest matchup between the two teams on Monday, though, Toledo had no problem finding the back of the net, as the Riverhawks scored four goals in a 4-0 shutout victory.
It’s Toledo’s first victory over Napavine since 2021, a stretch that includes back-to-back district title game losses in 2024 and 2025.
“They’ve kind of had our number,” Toledo coach Horst Malunat said. “It was nice to play on our home field and beat them.”
Toledo had the majority of chances throughout the game, dominating possession and passing the ball in and around Napavine’s defensive third, but the game remained scoreless through the first half hour.
That changed in the 32nd minute, when Peyton Holter caught up to a through ball from Xtyn Norberg and slotted the ball home to put Toledo on the board.
Just seven minutes later, Norberg scored herself off a shot through a crowded box, capping a hectic sequence off a Riverhawk corner kick that included a separate shot hitting the post.
At halftime, Malunat said that he and his team talked about playing the ball diagonally and changing the point of attack quicker, a switch that led to two more goals after the break.
Aspen Cooper connected on a close-range shot in the 64th minute, and Onica Chase took advantage of space in front of her by connecting on a shot from outside the box in the 75th minute.
“That paid off,” Malunat said of the adjustment. “We did a little better just moving the ball.”
By the end of the night, Toledo had 31 shots and six corners, while Napavine finished with just one shot and zero corners.
Napavine coach Caleb Gallanger said that was partially a product of how the Tigers played, as they sat back in the defensive half to avoid giving Toledo’s speedsters chances to get on the move in open space.
“We know that if we step up and get really high on the field, they’re gonna just keep sending these through balls,” Gallanger said. “Our team wasn’t ready to handle those, and we’ve seen what they can do to other teams when they do that.”
Though the Riverhawks were able to get four goals across, they could have had more if it wasn’t for the play of Napavine goalkeeper Myah Kadoun.
The freshman keeper posted double-digit saves, including multiple leaping saves where she was able to punch the ball over the crossbar.
“She played amazing,” Gallanger said. “Best game of the season for her. She’s improved so much. She’s come from not playing goalkeeper at all ever before to her performance tonight.”
The loss was Napavine’s first league loss of the season, but the Tigers are still in a good spot heading into the final few games of the regular season.
As of the end of Monday, Oct. 19’s games, Napavine (7-6, 4-1 C2BL) is in third in the C2BL standings, and the Tigers will end their regular season with three home games. That home stretch starts on Wednesday, when Onalaska comes to town, then extends into a Friday non-league game with Cle Elum-Roslyn before a matchup against Adna next Wednesday, Oct. 28.
“We want to keep Onalaska tight and we want to take it to Adna and beat Adna,” Gallanger said. “I think we can.”
Toledo (8-2-2, 5-0 C2BL) is now just one of two C2BL teams left that is unbeaten in league play, along with Onalaska. The Riverhawks and Loggers will face off in their respective season finales, but not before Toledo plays three other games, starting with a trip to South Bend on Wednesday to face Raymond/South Bend.
Malunat said that a league title would be nice, but the focus is on heading into the district tournament on good form and vying for a top-eight seed, which would give the Riverhawks a home game in the state tournament.
