Rivalry matches on tap for area soccer squads

Soccer season is already well underway for area teams, several of whom surely have today’s date circled in the calendar.

Flathead, Glacier, Columbia Falls and Whitefish certainly do.

The Kalispell schools face off in their first crosstown game of the season, and Columbia Falls and Whitefish have a rematch of last year’s state boys final on deck (the Whitefish girls lost to eventual champ Laurel in the semifinals).

The Wildcats and Bulldogs are undefeated to start the season and have something else in common — both have allowed just one goal.

Whitefish defeated Columbia Falls 3-2 in a nailbiter in last year’s Class A final, the school’s fourth in a row and the second time in as many years that the teams met in the chipper.

And even bigger than that, the Bulldogs have not lost a game since falling to Belgrade in the 2017 state final. That’s 57 wins to be exact, an unmatched and extremely rare accomplishment that places them in the pantheon of Montana soccer history. There were two ties in that span, one of which came from Columbia Falls in 2020.

“Last year was a pretty special year,” Whitefish coach John Lacey said.

The Bulldogs lost 10 seniors but the cupboard is never bare. While there might not be a superstar like Gabe Menicke, there’s still talent on the roster — and a lot of it, too.

There are three seniors — including Ethan Schott, starting goalkeeper, and defender Jack Peppmeier.

And of course, the juniors.

“We have big groups of juniors that are absolutely ready,” Lacey said.

Juniors like Ryder Elliott, who had the assist on Menicke’s championship-clinching goal last fall, and Collin Lyman, who netted eight goals last year but is well-positioned to surpass that number in 2022 (he’s scored six through six games).

Columbia Falls, on the other hand, has 10 returners and lost only one starter to matriculation.

Two years ago the Wildcats (5-0) had the youngest starting 11 in the state and made it to the state final as an underdog.

Now, that group is all grown up and hungrier than ever — and underdogs no more.

“If they were hungry a year ago, or even as super, super underdogs a year before that, I will tell you that they are hungry,” Wildcats coach O’Brien Byrd said. “They are wild with hunger. They have taken it and have lived with the underdog vibe for years and they can't wait to flip the script.”

One of those players is Kai Golan, a junior who finds time to kick for the Wildcats football team on Friday nights and scored 21 goals last fall.

Findley Sundberg is another. Sundberg, a senior, leads the state in points per game (5) and is second in goals (10). Walt Nichols, another senior, has scored five times.

The Lady Bulldogs (6-0) bring back all-Staters Isabelle Cooke, a junior, and senior Brooke Roberts to a dynamic offense that lost six to graduation.

Roberts has already scored six goals and junior Olivia Genovese is one behind state leader Mya Maack of Laurel. The steady Maya Lacey is back, and so is Maeve Ingelfinger.

“The players that we have now are very, very dynamic, very athletic, they want to run, want to get after people,” coach Roland Benedict said. “We will be a different look, different outfit to have people defend against.”

A first-round loss in the playoffs last fall hasn’t dampened the Wildkats’ outlook one bit.

Though eight impact players graduated, there’s still plenty of talent to go around in Columbia Falls (3-2).

That includes three seniors — keeper Zoey Byrd, Sydney Mann and Kya West. Also returning are juniors Hope McAtee (who’s scored six goals so far) and Josie Harris.

“We have a system that we're really excited to play, and I think we're gonna play a better brand of soccer than we've played since I've been here,” Wildkats coach Thomas Clark said. “We’re gonna value possession of the ball and hopefully that equates to wins. At this point I'm excited to say that we're gonna play the best brand of Wildcat soccer on the girls side since I've been here.”

The girls play at 3 p.m. and boys at 5 p.m. today. All games will take place at Smith Fields in Whitefish.

Class AA

The Flathead soccer program has seen some movement not only roster wise but also on the coaching front since last fall.

Zach Brenneman moved to the girls side after four seasons coaching the Braves after Bledy Dosa’s departure this summer. Alejandro Calderon took the reins as head coach of the boys after coaching JV for several years.

“I am pumped,” Calderon said. “I've been waiting for this moment for a long time. Soccer is my passion, so to be able to show it to these young guys, it's fun.”

Calderon hopes to bring a fresh perspective and identity to a Braves squad that has won three games in the past two seasons.

It seems to be working — the Braves are 2-3-1 so far.

One returner is Landen Saraceno, who was all-state in 2020. Trace Lenz leads the Braves with four goals.

The Bravettes have two seniors: all-conference midfielder Fiona Coulter and Sarah Marburger. Ally Pollan, a junior who was also all-conference last year, is back, and so is Mia Stephan, who has scored a team-leading five goals.

Otherwise the Bravettes (1-4-1) are young, but only lost two starters.

“I think we can be fairly competitive this year, but we're definitely gonna be able to build,” Brenneman said. “I think we can do something pretty cool this year with the girls, but to know that we're gonna be able to build off of that in the years to come with having a fairly young group of players this year is good.”

The Glacier (2-4) girls have a couple of familiar names back this fall, one of whom is junior Reagan Brisendine, who’s scored a whopping 16 goals through six games, tied for most in the state with Gallatin’s Olivia Collins.

Calista Wroble, also a junior, has four goals and seven assists, and Emmery Schmidt, a sophomore, has scored seven goals.

Glacier’s boys graduated the largest class in program history — 15, but the cupboard isn’t bare almost a year out from a heartbreaking 1-0 overtime loss to Hellgate in the state final.

There’s three seniors this fall: Harrison Sanders, Davis Rennie and goalkeeper Dylan Holly.

Holly played backup for three years and Sanders wasn’t a starter last year because the team was so deep at midfield.

“He’s just an outstanding leader,’ Glacier (3-1-2) boys coach Ryan Billiett said of Sanders. “He brings us things that not a lot of guys can. He’s really focused on the culture.”

But the junior class might be one to really keep an eye on in the coming year. That includes Hunter Lisowski, Bridger Dalla Betta and Hans Coggins, to name a few.

“The junior class… there’s so much talent,” Billiett said. “Holy smokes. I don’t know if they know what they’re capable of but we’re gonna try to get that out of them — realize the potential that they have.”

The boys play first at Legends Field today, at 6 p.m., and the girls take the field at 8.