Soccer: Green and Gold with a couple fresh faces

What happens when your soccer teams score a rare sweep of state championships? 

If you’re Whitefish activities director Aric Harris, you look for new coaches.  

That’s not how it usually is, nor is it preferred.  Roland Benedict went 81-30 coaching the Bulldog girls, and John Lacey went 100-24-4 with the boys, both over nine seasons. 

That’s 181 wins and six state titles, with Lacey’s teams collecting five. 

Into that breach step Eric Sawtelle and Kelly Ordway, taking over proud programs that are loaded, it seems, even if there aren’t clear choices at keeper. 

“Good question,” Sawtelle said. “We have a few goalies and we’re not making any decision right now. They’re working to earn their starting roles.” 

“Between the JV and varsity, we have five trying out,” Ordway, a former Pepperdine player who has been involved in Whitefish soccer for 20 years, added. 

Ordway, a Tucson, Arizona native, played from 1993-97 at Pepperdine. The small community feel of Malibu, California — “Huh, this gym is smaller than my high school’s,” she remembered thinking — seemed to click.  

Ordway got the same vibe from Whitefish, which fielded its first high school soccer teams in 1992. The Bulldog boys’ roster that season included Mike Ordway, her future husband. 

“I was really excited to hear that the opportunity opened up, and that parents were interested in having me apply,” Kelly Ordway said. “I’m super excited. We’ve had a really fun start.” 

Sawtelle’s coaching resume includes three years as an assistant and three as head coach for the Flathead boys. His first year as head coach the Braves won a second straight AA title, in 2006.  

He has been teaching in Whitefish for 12 years and spent the last two on Lacey’s staff. 

“John is a good man and great coach and mentor,” Sawtelle said.  

Following “the guy,” isn’t easy, even if you’ve done it before, which Sawtelle has. The father of two boys — eighth and sixth grade — needed a little time to think it over. 

“I wanted to make sure I had the time and the energy,” he said. “I have young boys of my own that I’ve wanted to be around for, as they learned to play soccer. They’re part of the reason I stepped in, but I want all of our boys to experience the continued success of the program.” 

For those counting, last fall marked the seventh time a school swept Montana state soccer titles. Whitefish, which also swept in 2006, is the only one to do it twice. 

Seems like the soccer programs are in quite capable hands, or feet, and not just at the high school level.  Lacey still coaches Flathead Valley United, and is vice president of Montana Youth Soccer. Benedict is the technical director for FVU.  

The Bulldogs roll on, with a couple new faces. The Green and Gold will still be tough to beat on the pitch.