Dogs crush Stevi, advance to semis
Ian Lacey competes with a defender during the Dogs' playoff win over Stevensville. (Daniel McKay/Whitefish Pilot)
Sam Menicke fires a shot during the Dogs' playoff win over Stevensville. (Daniel McKay/Whitefish Pilot)
James Thompson hits a header during the Dogs' playoff win over Stevensville. (Daniel McKay/Whitefish Pilot)
Josh Gunderson tries to get past some Yellow Jacket defenders during the Dogs' playoff win over Stevensville. (Daniel McKay/Whitefish Pilot)
Ian Lacey attacks the goal during the Dogs’ playoff win over Stevensville. (Daniel McKay/Whitefish Pilot)
Casey Schneider splits a pair of defenders during the Dogs’ playoff win over Stevensville. (Daniel McKay/Whitefish Pilot)
After Stevensville cut the score to 2-1 midway through the first half, it looked like the Dogs could be put on the ropes.
Then Bulldog boys soccer got going.
Whitefish went on to score seven unanswered goals Saturday in the next 40 minutes en route to a 10-2 playoff victory.
Whitefish went ahead early with an Ian Lacey goal in the second minute, followed by a Marvin Kimera goal in the 26th minute.
Chase Sabin, assisted by Kimera, kicked off the offensive explosion for the Dogs in the 38th minute, and Riley Arendt added a goal in the 40th minute to bring the score to 4-1 at the half.
Sam Menicke, Lacey, Casey Schneider, Brandon Mendoza, Gabe Menicke and Kimera all scored goals in the second half for Whitefish.
Lacey and Kimera both scored two goals in the match.
Lester knocked in Stevi’s second goal late in the second half.
Head coach John Lacey said he was happy with the way his team played, especially finishing the first half on a high note.
“The timing of our goals was critical, I think. Scoring in the first two minutes definitely set the tone after Stevi kept it tight and were with us for most of the first half,” he said. “A 4-1 game is very different from a 2-1 game, so that was pretty powerful. When we came out and started the second half the guys just played faster and easier and put it away.”
Saturday was nothing out of the ordinary for the Bulldogs, who have cracked double digits three times now this season.
The scoring is going to be needed during Saturday’s home semifinal battle against Billings Central.
The two teams met early in the season, which Whitefish won 7-0 behind Gabe Menicke’s hat trick.
Lacey said heading into the game, his practices are about mental focus and physical rest.
“Having a week between games, as you get in the playoffs, there’s a cycle to practice. We don’t need to be pushing and putting in new things. We need to maintain health and keep our focus sharp. For us the focus is scoring goals — goals win games,” he said.
Looking at Billings Central, he says the Rams are coming in on a hot streak, having won both a play-in game against Livingston and their first round matchup against Corvallis.
However, he’s happy with how his team matches up for this semifinal.
“I know they’re confident and they should be. It looks like they’re peaking at the right time,” Lacey said. “I think the success we had back in September is going to give us confidence. We’re just going to try and score as many as we can. We’ve got a pretty formidable roster that’s hard to play against and that’s where we’re going to focus our efforts.”
The match will also be the team’s last home game for the year, regardless of the outcome.
This year the south division gets the nod for hosting the state championship, as opposed to the north, who hosted last year.
“We’re pretty excited about making the most of our last game at Smith Fields for a lot of these guys,” Lacey said.
Stevensville 1 1 — 2
Whitefish 4 6 — 10
W — Ian Lacey (Brandon Mendoza) 2:00
W — Marvin Kimera (Sam Menicke) 26:00
S — Chance Lester 27:00
W — Chase Sabin (Kimera) 38:00
W — Riley Arendt (Josh Gunderson) 40:00
W — S. Menicke 43:00
W — Lacey (Schneider) 45:00
W — Schneider 48:00
W — Mendoza (Lacey) 58:00
W — Gabe Menicke (James Thompson) 68:00
S — Lester 74:00
W — Kimera 78:00