QuickTake:

Oregon all-time assist leader Libby McLaughlin was behind an eventually dominant win — although Marist was held in check early on. McLaughlin finished with two goals and created two more in the soccer semifinal victory. 

This story has been updated with the 4 p.m. Saturday starting time for the championship game.

Marist, the reigning girls soccer 4A state champion, was stymied for a half Tuesday, Nov. 11 against Henley’s defense in the girls’ soccer state semifinal. 

It’s not something the Spartans are used to — they now have a plus-94 goal differential this season — but it wasn’t an issue that stuck around for long. At halftime, the team diagnosed the issues, and implemented the solution in the second half.

The Spartans qualified for their fourth consecutive state final in a 4-0 win keyed by Oregon all-time assist leader Libby McLaughlin. The forward, who scored twice and created the other two to douse the Hornets’ defensive efforts, isn’t just a goal-scoring force. She’s “a nightmare to play against,” per head coach Stefan Schroffner.

Early on, everything flowed through McLaughlin, who opened the scoring in the 16th minute after sitting against the Hornets’ centerbacks and turning often — Schroffner called the first goal “really crucial.” She took a ball into her feet, then turned two defenders into the box onto her favored left foot before cutting the shot back into the bottom right corner.

“I was going to shoot with my right, and then I saw her overcommit,” McLaughlin said. “So then I just cut it back, and then I saw the goalie kind of start creeping to the left, and I placed it back to the right.”

In the first half, though, Marist didn’t offer the dominant performance that it had built throughout the 2025 season and Henley continued to build momentum while the Spartans began to cede ground. In the 25th minute, Hornets winger Paityn Modin dragged a shot barely wide of the bottom-right corner. 

“It’s kind of frustrating at first when we weren’t figuring it out, but once we did figure it out, it just felt like we were just playing our game again,” McLaughlin said.

McLaughlin wouldn’t be denied, though: In the 38th minute, she drew several defenders 20 yards from goal and escaped. The ball found Spartans forward Kiara Philyaw, who dispensed the cross past Henley goalkeeper Sam Cunningham.

At the half, the discussion was about effort, and how to break down a mid-block defense (with five pressing players) that the Spartans haven’t seen often this year.

“Today, we just saw that we weren’t putting in as much effort as we needed to, and that we know we can,” McLaughlin said. “Then, I think we came out in the second half and definitely dominated those 50-50 balls.”

It was McLaughlin once again behind the goal who put the game out of reach. Two minutes into the second half, she drew Cunningham to the far corner of the penalty area. Her pass found midfielder Tori Sherman at the top of the box, and she slotted it home to extend the lead to three goals. 

A corner kick drew a penalty kick for Marist in the 62nd minute, and McLaughlin found the bottom left corner and effectively ended the action. The final 20-minute spells of Marist possession didn’t yield further real chances — but there weren’t any for Henley either. 

“We were ready for this game,” Schroffner said. “It’s a tribute to the ladies. They’re the ones that wanted it. They’re the ones that are determined.”

Marist advances to the state final against The Dalles-Dufur (1-0 winners over Scappoose earlier Tuesday) on Saturday. Nov. 15. The game, to be played at Liberty High School in Hillsboro, begins at 4 p.m.

Creswell boys, girls fall in semifinals

A deep playoff run by both Creswell’s boys and girls soccer teams came to an end Tuesday, Nov. 11 in the 3A/2A/1A state tournament semifinals.

The Creswell boys team learned quickly why Portland’s Catlin Gabel is the state’s top-ranked 3A soccer team: On the road, the No. 5 Bulldogs fell to the Eagles 8-0. The game marked the fifth time this season that Catlin Gable has scored eight goals against an opponent — and the 10th shutout. The Bulldogs end their season with a 15-3 mark.

Meanwhile, the No. 3 Creswell girls lost a semifinal squeaker 2-1 at No. 2 Amity. The Bulldogs finish their season with a 15-2-2 mark. The loss was the first one for the Bulldogs since Sept. 16.