Lady Bulldogs fall to Laurel in girls’ final

LAUREL — The Laurel Locomotives scored two goals in the second half and one in overtime to beat the Whitefish Lady Bulldogs 3-2 for their second consecutive Class A State soccer title.

Emma Barron scored on a direct kick at 31:00 to give Whitefish a 1-0 lead into the half.

Barron scored on another direct kick with 18 minutes left but Laurel’s push began a few minutes later with Maeson Cotter’s goal. Grace Wagner tied it 2-2 with 10 minutes to go.

In overtime, Mya Maack scored in the first half of overtime, and the Locomotives held it up to win.

“Our coaching staff is immensely proud of the game we had,” Whitefish coach Roland Benedict said. “To perform and battle the way we did and get the defending champs down 2-0.”

The Bulldogs finished 11-1-1 after winning the Northern A conference in the regular season. It was Whitefish’s first trip to the final since 2013.

“I’m proud of the team, they played with class and style,” Benedict said. “You make it to a state final, you give yourself a chance to win it all, that’s all that matters.

Benedict noted that besides losing two seniors from this season, Sami Galbraith and Ali Hirsch, Whitefish will return most of the team in 2021-22.

“We’ll be pretty much full strength next year,” he said. “Whoever makes it to the final next year, we’ll be there.”

Whitefish 1 1 0 – 2

Laurel 0 2 1 – 3

W - Emma Barron, 31:00

W - Barron, 62:00

L - Maeson Cotter, 64:00

L - Grace Wagner, 70:00

L - Mya Maack, (OT)

Shots on goal - Whitefish 5, Laurel 21. Goalie saves - Whitefish 18 (Sami Galbraith), Laurel 1 (Anna Cole). Corner kicks – Whitefish 1, Laurel 7. Fouls - Whitefish 9, Laurel 27.