State A soccer semis: Whitefish girls host Frenchtown

The Whitefish girls soccer team hosts Frenchtown at 2 p.m. today in a Class A semifinal playoff match at Smith Fields.

Whitefish edged Livingston 1-0 in the first round while Frenchtown beat Laurel 6-5 in its first-ever playoff victory according to the Missoulian. Whitefish is a regular in the playoffs, having reached the semifinals a year ago and the championship game in 2010.

While Whitefish (11-2-0) and Frenchtown (9-4-1) haven’t met yet this season, Whitefish coach Wendy Farrens said she has a good idea of what to expect.

“Most teams still playing at this point are very athletic, good teams,” she said. “We know that they have a couple good goal-scorers on their team. They score a lot of goals, so we’re working on defensive shape.”

Frenchtown is the second-highest scoring team in Class A behind five-time defending state champion Billings Central. Abbey Teagle leads the way with 27 goals and the Broncs average 4.8 goals per game. Teagle scored five times in Frenchtown’s first-round win over Laurel.

“Our defense has been tested pretty well throughout the season,” Farrens said. “We’ve proved ourselves and we’re confident in our ability.”

Freshman Haley Nicholson is Whitefish’s leading scorer with 17 goals.