Lady Dogs looking to rally after tough weekend
It was a tough weekend for the Lady Dogs (2-3) at home.
On Friday they hosted Laurel, falling 5-0.
Laurel scored three goals in the first half and two in the second. Whitefish got 5 shots on goal to Laurel’s 20.
Then on Saturday, they faced off against the Billings Central Rams, who last year knocked them out of the semifinal game.
The Rams were dominant, beating the Dogs by another 5-0 score.
The Rams’ Morgan Ferestad added to her state-record goal count in the 11th minute for Billings’ first goal. That was followed by two more Billings scores, the second by Solei Elletson, in the 23rd and 31st minute to take a 3-0 halftime lead.
Zoie Altoff and Alivia Powers put the finishing touches on the win with goals in the 52nd and 59th minutes.
Whitefish wasn’t able to get a shot on goal in the game, while Sami Galbraith had her hands full in Whitefish’s own goal.
Galbraith had 18 saves in the game.
Head coach Roland Benedict said while the final scores were disappointing, he was glad his team got a challenge to learn from.
Along with facing tough teams, he said his own team was fighting off some minor injuries and illnesses over the weekend.
“Anytime you bring Laurel and Billings Central in, it’s going to be tough,” he said. “It kind of fell in a bad spot for us where we weren’t at 100%. But those nonconference games, no matter the result, you’re just collecting data and getting ready for the rest of the season.”
Earlier in the week, the Dogs did some domination of their own over the Bigfork Valkyries, winning 5-0.
Josie Schneider played a hand in all five of the team’s goals, having already notched a hat trick by halftime.
Schneider assisted on Grace Benkelman’s two goals in the second half. Whitefish racked up 30 shots on goal to Bigfork’s 3.
Moving forward, Benedict said he wants to get his players to develop “grit.”
Adding aggressiveness to their current system of play is the next step in the Lady Dogs’ development.
“We play such a beautiful brand of soccer, we just need a little grit and ruthlessness. Learning how to be dangerous and play with a little courage to go in and put goals away. We get a lot of possessions, but we’re not a threat yet,” he said.
The team will get a chance to work on that with two games this week. On Tuesday after press time they faced off against Polson at home. Then on Saturday, they’ll travel down to the Bitterroot to get their first look at Hamilton.
Prior to Tuesday’s game, Bendedict said he’s looking forward to a Northwest A battle against the Lady Pirates.
“Polson’s got some dang players coming back, but they did lose a lot last year. Not that we’re taking them lightly. We know they’re dangerous and how they like to play,” he said.
Whitefish 3 2 — 5
Bigfork 0 0 — 0
W — Josie Schneider (Adrienne Healy) 6:00
W — Schneider (Sophie Olson) 15:00
W — Schneider (Taylor Gentry) 20:00
W — Grace Benkleman (Schneider) 43:00
W — Benkleman (Schneider) 73:00
Shots on goal — Whitefish 30, Bigfork 3; Goalie Saves — Whitefish 2 (Sami Galbraith), Bigfork 17 (Nevaeh Carlin); Corner kicks — Whitefish 5, Bigfork 0; Fouls — Whitefish 12, Bigfork 5; Cards — None.
Laurel 3 2 — 5
Whitefish 0 0 — 0
Shots on goal — Laurel 20, Whitefish 5; Goalie saves — Laurel 3, Whitefish 11 (Sami Galbraith); Corner kicks — Laurel 3, Whitefish 0; Fouls — Laurel 15, Whitefish 5; Cards — none.
Billings Central 3 2 — 5
Whitefish 0 0 — 0
B — Morgan Ferestad, 11:00
B – Name unavailable, 23:00
B — Solei Elletson, 31:00
B — Zoie Altoff, 52:00
B — Alivia Powers, 59:00
Shots on goal — Billings 23, Whitefish 0; Saves — Whitefish 18, Billings 0; Corner kicks — Billings 6, Whitefish 0; Fouls — Billings 5, Whitefish 3; No cards.