SOCCER: Hawks rocket past Glacier

Glacier had never seen anything like this before.

Even with a resume that includes a victory over conference champion Missoula Hellgate and five wins in seven matches to close the season, the Wolfpack had its eyes opened Thursday afternoon against Eastern conference champion Bozeman in the quarterfinals of the Class AA state boys soccer tournament at Kidsports Complex, where the Hawks scored three times in the first half, added three more in the first seven minutes of the second half and obliterated Glacier 8-2.

“We didn’t see it all year long,” Glacier coach Ryan Billiet said of the Hawks.

“It’s tough to go through an entire conference, all conference (season), and not see a team like this and then all of a sudden to see them here and to be like ‘oh, so it’s that quick? So it’s that precise?’

“It took us a little while to make some adjustments and, man, they capitalized on some opportunities inside that 18 [yard box].”

Bozeman (13-1-1) was sensational in the offensive end, passing with tic-tac-toe brilliance and spinning the Glacier defense into knots.

The Hawks opened the scoring in the fourth minute when Ben Holmgren found Larkin Lane in front of the net for a one-touch goal. In the 17th minute, Holmgren again beautifully one-touched a pass to a streaking attacker, this time Aspen Kline, to make the score 2-0.

Glacier (7-8-1) mounted a rally late in the first half and had a handful of dangerous moments, but each shot on goal was turned aside by Hawks keeper Max Yates. Bozeman went into halftime ahead 3-0 after Fritz Arnold scored in the 29th minute and three more quick scores after the break put the match well out of reach.

“We showed at times that we could play at their level,” Billiet said. “We even had some really good looks. The keeper made a couple of saves and then all of a sudden they finished their opportunities — they’re so sharp in the final third, silky smooth with the ball and well coached.

“It showed that we still have a long way to go and that’s OK,” he continued. “This is about growing and maturing and improving every day. I think it’s a good lesson for these guys to know that, yeah, we’ve taken leaps and bounds but we’re still not there. Playing against a team like that, that’s what it takes if you ever want to win a state championship in the state of Montana.”

Mathew Martini headed in a goal in the 50th minute off a Rohit Tappeta service on a free kick, and Tappeta himself would score in the 64th minute.

Bozeman was credited with 17 shots on goal, forcing Andrew Lorenc to make nine stops. Yates made five saves for the Hawks.

Glacier’s tournament is not over despite the loss, with the Wolfpack sliding into the consolation bracket. It will play a loser-out match today against Billings West at 11 a.m. and could finish as high as fifth in the state with wins today and Saturday.

“The guys never stopped, never wavered, they kept battling,” Billiet said. “[Friday]’s another day and we’re excited for an opportunity against Billings West.”

Bozeman will meet Missoula Sentinel in a semifinal match today at 1:30 p.m. The Spartans beat West 4-0 on Thursday.

Missoula Hellgate and Helena won the other two quarterfinal matches and will square off against each other today at 1:30 p.m. Butte and Billings Senior will play at 11 a.m. in the other loser-out consolation match.

Glacier 0 2 — 2

Bozeman 3 5 — 8

BOZ — Larkin Lane (Ben Holmgren), 4:00

BOZ — Aspen Kline (Holmgren), 17:00

BOZ — Fritz Arnold (N/A), 29:00

BOZ — Noah Metzger (N/A), 45:00

BOZ — Blake Palmquist (N/A), 46:00

BOZ — Arnold (N/A), 47:00

GLA — Mathew Martini (Rohit Tappeta), 50:00

BOZ — Dominic Altamura (N/A), 56:00

GLA — Tappeta (unassisted), 64:00

BOZ — N/A, 78:00

Shots on goal — Glacier 7, Bozeman 17. Saves — Glacier 9 (Andrew Lorenc), Bozeman 5 (Max Yates). Cards — Yellow: Glacier 1.

Other First-Round Matches

Thursday At Kidsports Complex

Stats for some matches not available

BOYS

Billings West 0 0 — 0

Missoula Sentinel 2 2 — 4

MS — Dylan Farnes, 13:00

MS — Hunter VanCleave, 19:00

MS — Farnes, 73:00

MS — Quin Winger, 74:00

Shots on goal — West 9, Sentinel 15; Goalie saves — West 12 (Ryan Cornwall), Sentinel 6 (Rushton Hicks); Corner kicks — West 4, Sentinel 8; Fouls — West 4, Sentinel 6; Cards — NA.

Helena High 0 1 — 1

Billings Senior 0 0 — 0

H — Jacob Ries-Roncalli (Zander Moser), 73:00

Shots on goal — Helena 12, Senior 12; Goalie saves — Helena 18 (NA), Senior 15 (NA); Corner kicks — Helena 4, Senior 6; Fouls — Helena 10, Senior 17; Cards — Senior, 2.

Missoula Hellgate 1 4 — 5

Butte 0 1 — 1

B — Travis Williams, 20:00

MH — Matt Baldridge, 22:00

MH — Will Dauenhauer, 45:00

MH — Rylan Compton, 60:00

MH — Finn Bingham, 69:00

MH — Compton, 77:00

Stats NA

GIRLS

Bozeman NA NA — 4

Missoula Hellgate NA NA — 0

Goal Times Not Available.

B — Olivia Kaiser, Alexa Coyle (2), Abby Koss.

Stats Incomplete

Helena Capital 1 2 — 3

Billings Senior 0 1 — 1

HC — Sydney Sheridan, 37:15

BS — Saydee Preston, 63:28

HC — Kinzie Adams, 66:06

HC — Ashley Carlson (Bryn Walker)

Shots on goal — Capital 23, Senior 18; Goalie saves — Capital 16 (Aryn Cummings), Senior 15 (NA); Corner kicks — Capital 3, Senior 3; Fouls — Capital NA, Senio0r 7; Cards — NA.

Missoula Sentinel 0 0 0 0 — 0

Billings Skyview 0 0 0 0 — 0

Sentinel Wins Shootout 5-4

Helena High 0 0 0 0 — 0

Billings West 0 0 0 0 — 0

West Wins Shootout 4-3

SCHEDULE

Friday

Boys

Loser Out

11 a.m. — Butte vs. Billings Senior

11 a.m. — Glacier vs. Billings West

Semifinals

1:30 p.m. — Missoula Hellgate vs. Helena High

1:30 p.m. — Bozeman vs. Missoula Sentinel

Girls

Loser Out

11 a.m. — Helena High vs. Billings Senior

11 a.m. — Missoula Hellgate vs. Billings Skyview

Semifinals

1:30 p.m. ­— Billings West vs. Helena Capital

1:30 p.m. — Bozeman vs. Missoula Sentinel