Not even the absence of seven players could keep the Thomas Jefferson boys soccer squad out of the win column Thursday.

Seven players were suspended for partying reasons, but the Raiders still went out and delivered a 4-0 win over Mount Rainier at Federal Way Memorial Stadium.

"I had four starters missing, and we'll have two back for Saturday," said TJ head coach Dave Hanson.

"We just play our best with the missing players and try to get (team win) points and stay on top of the league," said sophomore midfield/forward Isidro Prado Huerta .

And even though Mount Rainier's Rams were lopsided losers against the Raiders, Hanson says to watch out for them down the line.

"I think maybe Mount Rainier could sneak back in since they're taking five teams instead of four," Hanson said. "Mount Rainier showed some signs there."

The only difference was that the Raiders showed their talent in the form of four goals for the offense and in a shutout for the defense.
Hanson also liked the way his team scored its goals.

"We scored some nice goals tonight," Hanson said. "It was a fun game."

And a wet game.

"The weather changed on us," Hanson said.

The weather started its turn for the wetter as the game began. TJ senior forward Karl Finnsson was the first to fight the wet stuff off and score a goal.

"I just picked up the rebound," he said of the goal from close up on the left side with 36:51 left in the first half.

Senior forward/midfielder Casey Kim struck next on a cross from senior/midfielder Jimmy Oganga with 29:04 left until halftime.

Huerta hit the back of the net with 19:36 remaining to give the Raiders a quick 3-0 advantage.

The second half turned the barrage of goals and goal shots down before Omar Abdi hit the back of the net for TJ with 4:53 remaining.

Abdi struck on a well-fed cross from Kim, drilling it on in.

The game then went down to a no-scoring battle, with two impressive Mount Rainier attempts just missing. One was a line shot that just sailed over the top of the goal and another was caught by the goalie as time expired.

TJ visits Auburn-Riverside at 3:30 p.m. Saturday, March 26 before hosting Kent-Meridian at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 29. Mount Rainier was set to host Kenwood Saturday and to visit Kentridge Tuesday.