SOCCER ROUNDUP: Columbia Falls squeaks out win; Flathead boys tie Sentinel
Columbia Falls bounced back from a goal deficit in a physical game with Stillwater Christian to leg out a 2-1 nonconference victory on Tuesday afternoon.
Stillwater got on the board first with an unassisted goal from Jonny Warricks shortly after halftime.
The game had been a slugfest to that point, with the teams combining for 23 fouls in the contest.
“It was a little cagey in the first half,” Stillwater coach Ryan O’Rourke said. “That (goal) kinda opened it up a bit. It got more exciting after that.”
Columbia Falls answered with a goal from Logan Stephens three minutes later on an assist from Jon Sigurdsson.
Sigurdsson would add the game winner in the 65th minute on a pass from Auguste Emond.
“Both teams made adjustments at half,” Wildcats coach O’Brien Byrd said. “I’m so proud our team came back. We found a way to win today. They stuck to the gameplan and kept grinding away. Stillwater held us off for so long, kudos to them. It was an awesome game. Amazing defensive display by Stillwater.”
Columbia Falls outshot the Cougars 18-6 forcing Stillwater goalkeeper Zack Basnett into 11 saves. Stillwater had five corner kicks to Columbia Falls’ two.
C. Falls 0 2 — 2
Stillwater 0 1 — 1
SCS—Jonny Warricks (unassisted), 47’
CF—Logan Stephens (Jon Sigurdsson), 50’
CF—Sigurdsson (Auguste Emond), 65’
Saves—SCS 11 (Zack Basnett), CF 3 (Brandon Karberg). Shots—SCS 6, CF 18. Corner kicks—SCS 5, CF 2. Fouls—SCS 12, CF 11. Cards—none.
Flathead 2, Sentinel 2
MISSOULA — Flathead took an early lead but couldn’t hold on, escaping with a conference draw against Missoula Sentinel.
Jordan Buxton scored early in the first half to put Flathead out front and Makena Tanko doubled the tally in the 57th minute to give the Braves what looked like a commanding lead.
Sentinel struck back one minute later though and with 12 minutes to play struck again on a goal from Austin Leadbetter.
Flathead mucked up the game with 23 fouls and three yellow cards. Sentinel picked up two yellow cards and outshot the Braves 9-3, picking up six corner kicks to Flathead’s three.
Flathead 1 1 — 2
Sentinel 0 2 — 2
F—Jordan Buxton (Jalen Hawes), 14:00
F—Makena Tanko (Hanson Eystad), 57:00
S—Hunter VanCleave (Austin Leadbetter), 58:00
S—Leadbetter (Dylan Farnes), 68:00
Shots on goal – Flathead 3, Sentinel 9. Saves – Flathead 3 (Micah Bucy), Sentinel 1 (Rushton Hicks). Corner kicks – Flathead 3, Sentinel 6. Total fouls – Flathead 23, Sentinel 10. Cards – Flathead 3 yellow, Sentinel 2 yellows.
GIRLS
Sentinel 5, Flathead 1
MISSOULA — The Flathead girls made strides in a Western AA conference loss to Missoula Sentinel, creating a handful of opportunities before falling behind in the second half.
Sentinel scored early off a corner kick in the eighth minute and added another four minutes later to take a 2-0 lead.
Flathead answered quickly, Sara Clarin finding Zina Loudermilk for a goal in the 22nd minute to cut the deficit in half.
However, just seconds before halftime, Syd Steele scored her second of the game, taking the air out of the Flathead momentum. Sentinel scored two more late in the second half to extend their lead.
Sentinel had 24 shots on goal and Flathead senior goalkeeper Kelsey Gillespie made 18 saves as the Bravettes had their chances in the game.
“Our keeper had the best game of her life,” Bravettes coach Jenni Sipe said. “She had 10 saves in the first half and eight in the second.”
“We had way more opportunities to score, we just need to finish.”
The Flathead boys and girls will face Glacier on Thursday.
Flathead 1 0 — 1
Sentinel 3 2 — 5
S – Brittany Delridge (assist Syd Steele) corner kick, 8:00
S - Steele (Jill Madsen), 12:00
F - Zina Loudermilk (Sara Clarin), 22:00
S - Steele (Piper Woodard), 40:00
S - Woodard (Emma Krebsbach), 59:00
S - Delridge (PK), 72:00
Shots on goal – Flathead 8, Sentinel 24. Saves – Flathead 18 (Kelsey Gillespie), Sentinel 2 (Bekah Joy). Corner kicks – Flathead 2, Sentinel 9. Total fouls – Flathead 5, Sentinel 2. Cards – None.
Whitefish 7, Bigfork 2
WHITEFISH — Haley Nicholson scored a hat trick in the first 30 minutes and four goals total as Whitefish outpaced speedy Bigfork in a Northern A conference win.
Nicholson scored in the seventh minute and added tallies in the 17th and 27th, with goals from Julia Houston and Grace Benkelman giving Whitefish a 5-0 lead through 28 minutes.
Bigfork was able to take control of the pace early in the second half, playing a pair of long balls for speedy forward Haile Norred, who netted goals in the 46th and 51st minutes.
Nicholson answered in the 63rd and Anna Cook 10 minutes later to retake control for Whitefish, who went on to the commanding win. The Bulldogs outshot Bigfork 27-6.
Bigfork 0 2 — 2
Whitefish 5 2 — 7
W—Haley Nicholson (unassisted), 7’
W—Julia Houston (Anna Cook), 11’
W—Nicholson (Audrey Hyatt), 17’
W—Nicholson (Abby Lowry), 27’
W—Grace Benkelman, 28’
B—Haile Norred, 46’
B—Norred, 51’
W—Nicholson, 63’
W—Cook (Kellie Brown), 73’
Saves—Bigfork 16 (Celeste Rehbein), Whitefish 3 (Kess Nelson). Shots—Bigfork 6, Whitefish 27. Corner kicks—Bigfork 5, Whitefish 4. Cards—none.
Stillwater 2, Columbia Falls JV 1
In a reverse of the boys game, Stillwater’s girls varsity team bounced back from a goal down to win a nonconference game over the Columbia Falls JV.
Flora Jarvis gave the Wildkats a 1-0 halftime lead with a score in the 24th minute, but a pair of second half goals from Jascah Vann sent Stillwater to a victory.
The Cougars outshot Columbia Falls 31-5.
CFalls JV 1 0 — 1
Stillwater 0 2 — 2
CF—Flora Jarvis (unassisted), 24’
SCS—Jascah Vann (Chloe Mathwig), 50’
SCS—Vann (Alma Patrick), 69’
Saves—CF 12, SCS 2. Shots—CF 5, SCS 31. Corner kicks—CF 3, SCS 3.