MARYSVILLE — Marysville-Pilchuck hosted rival Arlington on Oct. 20 in a game that both teams needed to win if either’s District Tournament dreams were to remain intact.

M-P fought hard with speed and vigor but fell to the Eagles, 2-1.

Arlington took advantage in the first half with a goal each from senior forward Dana Canaria and junior midfielder Margan Busby to break the game open.

The Tomahawks retaliated with senior defender Courtney Coombs’ 70th-minute goal, but they could not close the gap, even with the barrage of corner kicks into Arlington’s box in the waning minutes of the game.

“We threw everything we could at them,” Tomahawk coach Paul Bartley said. “In the second half, our keeper stood at midfield and everyone else attacked the box.”

Bartley said the result matches the teams’ relative conditions.

“We’ve had a lot of injuries, so we had people playing positions that they usually don’t play,” Bartley said. “It was a pretty even game — it comes down to what personnel you’ve got at any given time. Arlington caught us flat twice and we couldn’t answer in the first.”

The Tomahawks were certainly not without chances to tie the game or win.

“At end of game we had five or six corners, but we couldn’t put the ball in,” Bartley said. “As long as they gave me their best effort, it doesn’t matter what the result is — I want them to play hard and go have fun.”

The match was a reunion of sorts for Bartley, as he got to coach against his niece, forward Kaylee Bartley.

“She’s the only freshman I know of that they’ve put on varsity,” Bartley said. “This might be the last year we play this Arlington team because we might go 3-A, because of the number of kids we share with Marysville Getchell.”