Flathead sweeps Sentinel

Flathead soccer teams swept a pair of contests with Missoula Sentinel on Tuesday. The Bravettes beat Sentinel 2-0 behind a pair of goals from forward Heidi Windauer, while Jerrad Merrill kicked in the lone goal in the Braves 1-0 win.

Flathead 2, Sentinel 0

If you blinked, you missed it.

Heidi Windauer score twice in less than a minute, breaking open a scoreless tie and leading Flathead to a win.

Windauer's first goal came five minutes into the second half. The Bravette forward received a pass from Meagan Hash near midfield, juked her defender with a nifty move - kicking the ball to the right of the Sentinel player while racing around her left to control the ball - and then beat the goalie for the goal.

In this case, sibling rivalry paid off. Windauer said she learned the move from her older brother Dan, a former Flathead soccer player.

"It was a move my brother used to use on me," Windauer said. "I could never stop it."

Windauer didn't need any fancy moves on her second strike, which came less than a minute later. Flathead midfielder Chelsea Shuman gained possession of the ball in Bravette territory, then hit Windauer with a near perfect pass up the right side of the field. Windauer beat the Sentinel defense to the ball and buried a shot in the corner of the net on the breakaway.

Flathead came a long way in just three days. The Bravettes were buried by Helena on Saturday, but bounced back with a character-building performance that for the most part pleased their coach.

"We put our passes together a lot better than against Helena," Flathead coach Scott Warnell said. "But this team is still capable of playing better."

Flathead's defense bent - as witnessed by Sentinel's 17 shots on goal, most coming in the second half after Flathead had claimed the lead - but never broke as goalie Karli Kusler turned in a strong game in the net.

"They had a couple of breakaways but Karli really stepped up and didn't allow them to get back in the game," Warnell said.

Flathead's gutty defensive effort was typified by a critical play midway through the first half. Sentinel drove the ball into the Flathead penalty box on a promising scoring opportunity, but three point-blank shots were turned away.

Hash took one for the team on the first Sentinel shot, blocking an almost certain goal when she put her head in front of the ball and deflected it away from the net. Sentinel got another shot on the rebound, but Kusler knocked in away with a save. Sweeper Tess Brenneman finally cleared the ball from the box, ending the Sentinel's scoring bid.

Kusler - who had 17 saves - credited Flathead's team effort for the win.

"We really pulled it together and played as a team, played as a unit," Kusler said. "They (her defensive teammates) were a wall."

Sentinel 0 0 - 0

Flathead 0 2 - 2

Flathead - Heidi Windauer (Meagan Hash) 45:00

Flathead - Heidi Windauer (Chelsea Shuman) 46:00

Shots on goal - Sentinel 17, Flathead 7

Corner Kicks - Sentinel 1, Flathead 0

Goalie saves - Sentinel 6 (Emily Mason), Flathead 17 (Karli Kusler)

Fouls - Sentinel 4, Flathead 10

Cards - Sentinel 0, Flathead 0

Flathead 1, Sentinel 0

Anytime your goalie stops a penalty kick it's a gift. But when you only managed to hang one goal on the scoreboard, that P.K. stop begins to look like Manna from Heaven.

Jordan Remington's stop on Justin Mikkola's penalty kick was just one of many important stops for the Flathead goalie. But none were more dramatic.

"Jordan saved that penalty kick," Flathead coach Chris Putzler said. "That's the difference in the game."

Well, that stop and the lone goal of the contest, scored by Flathead midfielder Jerrad Merrill in the first half. Merrill's goal came off a corner kick lofted in front of the Sentinel goal by Kyle Dixon. Sentinel goalie Nate Bell leapt for the ball, and appeared to get a hand on it, but couldn't corral it in. Merrill was in position behind the play, and drove the deflection into the net.

Flathead had opportunities in the second half to pad the lead, but the Braves were unable to convert. Defender Colin Gaiser led a Flathead breakaway, passing to Cameron Clevidence in the penalty box. Clevidence had two shots on goal, but both bounced off the goal posts. Later in the half, Chase Jordt appeared to score when he controlled a loose ball in the penalty box on a breakaway. But the assistant referee ruled that the goalie had first gained possession of the ball and waived off the goal.

Sentinel had its own opportunities, including a breakaway late in the game when a Flathead defender misfired as he tried to clear the ball from in front of the Flathead net. Sentinel had a good look at the goal, but the shot was wide of the net.

Flathead lost Gaiser late in the game to a red card, when he was called for encroachment on a Sentinel free kick. Since the play was his second yellow, the referee pulled the red card as well. Since it was a soft red, Flathead wasn't forced to play short handed the rest of the way. It will force Gaiser, however, to miss the Glacier contest on Thursday at Legends Stadium.

Sentinel 0 0 - 0

Flathead 1 0 - 1

Flathead - Jerrad Merrill (Kyle Dixon) 26:00

Shots on goal - Sentinel 14, Flathead 15

Corner Kicks - Sentinel 3, Flathead 8

Goalie saves - Sentinel 6 (Nate Bell), Flathead 6 (Jordan Remington)

Fouls - Sentinel 1, Flathead 11

Cards - Sentinel 0, Flathead 2