Whitefish, Libby seek soccer titles

A state championship is only 80 minutes away for the Whitefish girls and Libby boys.

Whitefish (12-2 overall) plays at Billings Central (14-0) at 11 a.m. today in the Class A girls state soccer title game. In Libby, the Loggers (10-2-2) host Belgrade (9-4-1) at 1 p.m. in the Class A boys title match.

The Whitefish girls face the undefeated two-time defending state champs on their home field in a rematch of last year's semifinal game. Billings Central eliminated the Bulldogs with a 5-0 playoff victory in 2009. The Rams then traveled to Whitefish in the second game of this season and defeated the home team 2-1.

Overall, Billings Central, which has won a state-record 43 games in a row, has a 3-0 record against Whitefish in the last two seasons.

But ...

"This team is a whole new team," Whitefish second-year coach Erin Morrison said of her squad. "I honestly think we have so much more confidence as a team than we did before against (Billings Central). We have this new confidence and this presence about us compared to before. We're not going down without a fight."

Whitefish put together an impressive season led by junior Natalie Gayner (17 goals, 10 assists) and senior Presley Pritchard (15 goals, 4 assists). Junior Sam Dittman is the assists leader with 11.

Morrison remembers after tryouts ended she made the varsity team stand up one-by-one and recite a half-goal, half-declaration.

"I actually had the girls physically say ‘I'm part of this team and we are going to win state,'" the coach said. "They say it and they believed it. That's definitely our Everest of the season. They understand how big this game is and they understand you don't get many chances at this."

As a program, Whitefish has won two girls state titles, in 2006 and 2001.

"It's been a special season," Morrison said. "No matter what happens, I'm so proud of these girls."

The Libby boys have reached the finale by the skin of their teeth, winning in overtime in the opening round and then edging Livingston 1-0 in the semifinals.

Libby knows drama, though. In 2008, the Loggers defeated Billings Central in a state championship shootout.

With a senior-heavy team, the Loggers are facing a Belgrade squad they already defeated. In Belgrade, Libby won 4-3 on Sept. 3.

Libby is led by seniors Crawford Dinning (12 goals, 2 assists) and Cree Maloney (8 goals, 5 assists).