Wildkats hold off Whitefish

WHITEFISH — If you can’t remember the last time the Columbia Falls Wildkats beat the Whitefish Bulldogs, that’s okay — it’s been a while.

The Wildkats last beat Whitefish in soccer on Sept. 27, 2018. There have been a few close contests over the intervening years, but this time Columbia Falls used a late rally to hold off Whitefish, 2-1 on Thursday at Smith Fields.

"Great result against a great team,” Wildkats coach Thomas Clark said. “It's awesome.”

Isabelle Cooke gave Whitefish a 1-0 lead with a fantastic individual effort right before the half, and there things stood until Hope McAtee tied it in the 65th minute. Kenzee West scored the winning goal with five minutes left on the clock.

McAtee’s goal came after Josie Harris drew a penalty in the goal box. West, the spark plug for the last 10 minutes of the game, scored off McAtee’s pass after Clark moved her up top from her usual center-midfield spot.

“We made some adjustments in the second half and were able to continue to create chances,” Clark said. “Hope McAtee played a great game. She was finding opportunities to create some passes over the top and play a little bit more direct than we usually do.”

Whitefish (9-1-0 overall, 6-0-0 conference) locked down the Northwest A conference title, though they have one game remaining, at Polson on Saturday. Columbia Falls is solidly in second in the conference at 9-1-2 and 4-1-2. Playoffs begin next week.

“The girls needed to believe that they can get a result in one of those games where they play well and we get the result,” Clark said. “And it's been a long time since we've had one of those against them. It feels really good for the girls more than anything. it's at the perfect time heading into playoffs to have that sense of self-belief that we can accomplish, you know, anything really.”

Columbia Falls 0 2 — 2

Whitefish 1 0 — 1

WF — Isabelle Cooke 35:00

CF — Hope McAtee 65:00

CF — Kenzee West (McAtee) 75:00

Shots — CF 19, WF 16. Goalie saves — CF 12 (Erica Burguiere), WF 19 (Norah Schmidt). Corner kicks — CF 3, WF 3. Fouls — CF 9, WF 7. Cards — none.