It had been more than a week since the Bend High girls had played a game. But it was quickly apparent Tuesday that the Lava Bears had the upper hand in their 3-0 first-round state playoff soccer victory over Liberty.

“For not playing a game in 11 days, they came out and just got back into it,” Bend coach Mackenzie Groshong said. “I think we stepped it up and figured out what we needed to do.”

With the win at 15th Street Field, the Lava Bears advance to the quarterfinal round of the Class 5A state playoffs and another home game Saturday against Willamette.

A little more than 10 minutes into the first half of Tuesday’s match, a corner kick from midfielder Delaney Crook led to a header by Alex Howard for Bend’s first goal.

While the No. 4-seeded Lava Bears (10-2-2) were unable to score for the remainder of the half, the midfielders kept control of the ball.

“There was high adrenaline and lots of nerves going into the game,” Crook said. “But we did good with settling down early and getting composed. Coming from the midfield that really helps, because the midfield starts the attack.”

Of the Lava Bears’ 16 shots on goal in the first half, nine were from the midfielders. But the shots were secondary to the midfielders’ ability to steal the ball away and thwart the offensive strikes of the 13th-seeded Falcons (7-9).

“We have a very controlled and demanding midfield,” Bend midfielder Cambria Hurd said. “We’re really good at setting the tone of the play. I think our composure was great. There’s things we can work on like closing strikes, but overall the midfield kills it every game.”

Liberty coach Jim Maine said that the Falcons did not play to their potential.

“It was the little things,” Maine said. “We play on (artificial) turf. So we don’t get the crazy little bounces which led to them having a hard time getting the ball down the field. Not to use those as excuses, because Bend is a very good team. But it was the little things.”

In the second half, the midfield led the Lava Bears to two more goals. Midfielder Amidee Colleknon had an unassisted goal in the 18th minute, and she followed that with an assist to forward Meagan Laszlo for the final goal in the 24th minute.

“My midfield played strong,” Groshong said. “We mixed some things up to see where we could capitalize on their weaknesses and I think our girls did that well. They figured out what formation (Liberty) was playing and how to adjust to it.”

Two years ago, Bend played Liberty in a state playoff game and won 8-3. But this year’s matchup was more competitive. Crook, a senior, said Liberty had several players who were able to throw the Lava Bears off their game, particularly in the first half.

“They had some very talented individuals,” Crook said. “And we didn’t do so well tracking them and defending them individually. I think we could work on that.”

“For us, we just need to focus on touches on the ball,” Groshong said. “We’re going to be on the ball as much as we can and focus on working together and connecting as a team.”