Soccer: 'Dogs back in win column

WHITEFISH — Three days after its 32-match unbeaten streak came to an end, Whitefish bounced back with an emphatic 6-1 win over Polson in a Northern A soccer match Tuesday at Smith Fields.

The two-time defending state champions tied Columbia Falls two weeks ago, then lost a nonconference match to Stevensville on Saturday to end an unbeaten streak dating back to 2011, but they showed no ill effects from that loss in their return to conference play. Jared Johnson scored three times for his fourth hat trick of the season, Jon Dittman tallied two goals and three assists and Danny Weaver added a late goal.

“I think we definitely had to have some sort of mental shift from the tie and the loss,” Dittman said. “Because we’re not a bad soccer team, but sometimes we just lose that fight and no matter how good you are, you still have to have the heart to win a soccer game.”

The tie and loss marked the first adversity Whitefish (7-1-1 overall, 4-0-1 Northern A) had faced in awhile, and coach O’Brien Byrd said he was proud of his team’s bounce-back effort.

“That’s when anybody shows character,” Byrd said. “When they get knocked down. When you experience something like that, your character shows through in your response. We had a long talk yesterday and what happened to us on Saturday wasn’t really a soccer problem at all. It was a life lesson that we learned. You’ve got to be able to stand up for yourself and if you’re in a fight you’ve got to be able to defend yourself, you’ve got to be able to fight back.

“Our team took it pretty hard. Not the loss, but the style and the fashion in which we lost was not like us. I’m happy with their reply today, because we’re missing four starters, three out from the Saturday game, so we had guys that stepped in and did a great job for us.”

Johnson got the Bulldogs off to a fast start in the 12th minute when he won a ball near midfield, outran the Polson defense and calmly finished inside the far post. Dittman blasted a 40-yard free kick over Polson goalkeeper Trevor Basler in the 19th minute and scored again in the 35th when he nodded in Shanoah Montano’s corner kick.

Both teams picked up a pair of yellow cards in the second half, but the physical play didn’t halt Whitefish’s momentum. Set pieces led to Johnson’s second and third goals and the Bulldogs continued to control the majority of possession after the break.

Johnson volleyed a free kick from Dittman into the net in the 51st minute and added his third goal six minutes later when he tapped in a rebound.

Polson (0-9, 0-5) answered in the 67th minute when goalkeeper Sam Benkelman’s pass was intercepted by Spencer Raymond, who chipped the ball over Benkelman’s head for a goal.

Weaver scored Whitefish’s sixth goal seven minutes later.

“I think the key to today was coming out and matching Polson’s physical play, because they’re not at the technical level we are, but they’re going to hit us,” Dittman said. “They’re going to make tackles late and we just had to keep our heads and keep going.”

Whitefish will look to extend its new winning streak to two when it heads to Libby on Thursday. Polson returns to the pitch Saturday at Bigfork

“Time will tell if we’re back on track, this is a good start though,” Byrd said.

Polson 0 1 — 1

Whitefish 3 3 — 6

W - Jared Johnson (assist Jon Dittman), 12:00

W - Dittman, 19:00

W - Dittman (Shanoah Montano), 35:00

W - Johnson (Dittman), 51:00

W - Johnson (Dittman), 57:00

P - Spencer Raymond, 67:00

W - Danny Weaver (Johnson), 74:00

Shots on goal - Polson 1, Whitefish 13. Saves - Polson 7 (Trevor Basler, Rhett Burland), Whitefish 1 (Sam Benkelman). Corner kicks - Polson 0, Whitefish 5. Fouls - Polson 15, Whitefish 11. Yellow cards - Polson 2, Whitefish 2. Red cards - none.

Columbia Falls 3, Bigfork 1

BIGFORK — The Columbia Falls boys took advantage of the chance they got early in the second half, scoring twice to pull away from Bigfork. The Wildcats added a third on a Vikings own goal in the 66th minute to seal the Northern A conference game.

Bigfork outshot Columbia Falls 10-6 but could only convert one try, Kyle Thomson’s goal in the 63rd minute from Kegan Driver.

Columbia Falls 0 3 — 3

Bigfork 0 1 — 1

CF — Jackson Barta (Casey Burghduff), 47:00

CF — Quentin Foust (Burghduff), 58:00

BF — Kyle Thomson (Kegan Driver), 63:00

CF — Bigfork own goal, 66:00

Shots on goal — BF 10, CF 6. Saves — BF 6 (Dillon Hilling), CF 6 (Mason Gedlaman). Corner kicks — BF 5, CF 7. Fouls — BF 7, CF 5. Cards — none.

GIRLS

Whitefish 4, Polson 0

WHITEFISH — Whitefish maintained its stranglehold on the top spot in Northern A with a shutout win over Polson.

Whitefish (8-1 overall, 5-0 Northern A) overpowered the Pirates in the midfield and parlayed that advantage into a massive edge in possession and scoring chances. Jess Baldonado opened the scoring in the 9th minute, Haley Nicholson added a goal in the 53rd minute and Caroline Carbo drilled a pair of 40-yard bombs past Polson goalkeeper Jenna Evertz in the final 20 minutes.

The win put Whitefish eight points ahead of Polson (4-4-1, 2-2-1) and Columbia Falls in the conference standings with three games remaining.

“Our passing from the first day of the season to now has just improved so much,” Carbo said. “And we’re so comfortable, I think we’re finally just really working well as a team. We all know where we’re going to be and we’re just connecting so much better than we ever have this season. Our passing is what makes our team great.”

Polson didn’t put a single shot on frame all game, but its defense kept Whitefish at bay much of the first half. Anna Peterson had a chance in the 30th minute, but her 25-yard strike was knocked out of bounds by Evertz. Baldonado missed wide moments later and Katie Blankenship won a direct kick in 32nd minute, but Nicholson put it over the crossbar.

Baldonado helped set up Nicholson’s goal early in the second half. After winning the ball in the right corner, Baldonado played it to Grace Kurtz at the edge of the 18-yard box. Kurtz played a short pass up to Nicholson who hammered a shot past Evertz from 15 yards out.

That goal seemed to deflate Polson while Whitefish played its best soccer the remaining 25 minutes. The Bulldogs controlled possession with soft first touches and passing combinations and Carbo scored twice with long-range strikes from her central midfield position.

“We needed to keep our mindset going forward and not lay off,” Nicholson said.

Polson coach Michael Hewston said three of his starters played through illness, which could have contributed to his team’s lopsided loss.

“They did what they could do,” he said. “I don’t want to discount Whitefish. Whitefish is a heck of a team, but at the same time I had some really key players sick, like out of school yesterday sick. I’m not trying to make excuses, but I think we could’ve had more of a match if we would’ve been healthy.”

Whitefish is assured of a playoff spot and will look to lock up Northern A’s No. 1 seed in its three remaining games. The Bulldogs return to the field Thursday at Libby. Polson plays at Bigfork on Saturday.

Polson 0 0 — 0

Whitefish 1 3 — 4

W - Jess Baldonado (assist Anna Peterson), 9:00

W - Haley Nicholson (Grace Kurtz), 53:00

W - Caroline Carbo (Peterson), 64:00

W - Carbo (Nikita Packard), 76:00

Shots on goal - Polson 0, Whitefish 19. Saves - Polson N/A, Whitefish 0. Corner kicks - Polson 1, Whitefish 3. Fouls - N/A. Yellow cards - none. Red cards - none.

Columbia Falls 8, Bigfork 0

BIGFORK — The Columbia Falls girls strode by Bigfork on the legs of star striker Haley Purdy. Purdy assisted Lindsay Strouse on a goal five minutes into the game before scoring the next four goals herself in the Northern A conference win.

Ellie Johnson added a pair of late goals, Lottie Ellis had another and Strouse picked up a pair of assists as the Wildkats outshot Bigfork 18-2.

Columbia Falls 3 5 — 8

Bigfork 0 0 — 0

CF — Lindsay Strouse (Haley Purdy), 5:00

CF — Purdy (Alexi Corbett), 21:00

CF — Purdy (Kendra King), 36:00

CF — Purdy (Corbett), 48:00

CF — Purdy (unassisted), 51:00

CF — Ellie Johnson (Strouse), 56:00

CF — Lottie Ellis (Strouse), 64:00

CF — Johnson (unassisted), 69:00

Shots on goal — CF 18, BF 2. Saves — CF 2 (Andrea Getts), BF 9 (Alyssa Beach-Wallen). Corner kicks — CF 2, BF 2. Fouls — CF 4, BF 0. Yellow Cards — CF 2.