Lady Dogs ready for postseason
Lady Bulldog Senior Katie Blankenship dribbles the ball down the pitch Saturday against Libby at Smith Fields.
Heidi Desch / Whitefish Pilot Lady Bulldog Senior Haley Nicholson battles for the ball Saturday against Libby at Smith Fields.
Freshman Anna Cook takes the ball down field against Libby Saturday at Smith Fields. The Lady Bulldogs won the conference matchup 8-0.
The Lady Bulldogs (9-3-0) ended the regular season in an offensive fury, netting 8 goals to blank Libby 8-0 and secure their place as Northwest A champions.
Earlier in the week Whitefish fell to Polson 2-0. Amber Clarke and Ashlee Howell scored for the Pirates, who led the Lady Dogs 13-5 in shots on goal. Goalkeeper Kess Nelson had 11 saves for Whitefish.
Things took a more positive turn on Saturday against Libby, and the Lady Dogs started the scoring immediately. Senior Haley Nicholson nailed her first goal of the day just 44 seconds in, eventually netting six total in the match. With Saturday’s goals, Nicholson took over the Montana High School Association girls record for most goals scored in a school career with 96. The previous record was held by Heather Olson from Helena Capital from 1993 to 1996, with 91 goals. Nicholson has 27 goals this season, which also leads Class A for the second straight year. McKayla Stone and Mellisa Pollard also scored for the Lady Dogs on Saturday.
Whitefish took first place in Northwest A play with a 7-1-0 record in conference play, finishing just ahead of Polson.
Head coach Roland Benedict said splitting their last two games should have a good effect on the team as they start the playoffs.
“Obviously the girls wanted to win that last Polson game down there, but we agreed as a team that sometimes you need a metaphorical slap in the face to get you back and focused,” Benedict said. “It was good to have that and then have a game like Libby for senior night, where you can get fired up before the playoffs and get back on track.”
Playoffs begin Saturday with a home match at noon against Belgrade (7-3-2). Whitefish squeaked out a 1-0 victory when the two teams played earlier in the season.
Benedict said his team will be “honing the full package” this week in practice, watching a lot of game film to address weaknesses before taking on Belgrade.
“They’re a good team, a strong, athletic, fast team that’s well-coached. It’s going to be a fun game, and you’re going to see a lot of good high-level soccer on Saturday,” he said.
Whitefish 0 0 — 0
Polson 0 2 — 2
POL — Amber Clarke (Ashlee Howell), 47:00
POL — Howell (Tiara Duford), 75:00
Shots on goal — Whitefish 5, Polson 13. Saves — Whitefish 11 (Kess Nelson), Polson 5 (Jenna Evertz). Corner kicks — Whitefish 4, Polson 6. Fouls — Whitefish 11, Polson 3. Cards — None.
Libby 0 0 — 0
Whitefish 5 3 — 8
WF — Haley Nicholson (unassisted), 1:00
WF — Nicholson (Julia Houston), 18:00
WF — Nicholson (Kellie Brown), 28:00
WF — Nicholson (unassisted), 35:00
WF — Nicholson (Abby Lowry), 38:00
WF — McKayla Stone (Nicholson), 44:00
WF — Melissa Pollard (unassisted), 58:00
WF — Nicholson (unassisted), 62:00
Shots on goal — Libby 2, Whitefish 23. Saves — Libby 15 (Shannon Reny), Whitefish 2 (Kess Nelson). Corner kicks — Libby 0, Whitefish 4. Fouls — Libby 3, Whitefish 4. Cards — None.