The South Whidbey girls soccer team is holding its own early in the season with a 2-2 record‚ 1-1 in the Cascade Conference‚ after a win at Lakewood and a loss to Cedarcrest at home.
On Sept. 16 the Falcons defeated Lakewood 3-1.
In the first half, Laurie Robinson scored on an assist from Julia Iversen’s direct kick from the right side 17 minutes into the game.
The Cougars countered 46 minutes later with a penalty kick after the ball hit a Falcon defender’s arm in the penalty area. But with only a few minutes left to play, Robinson deflected a crossing ball from forward Karissa Thomas to regain the lead.
Thomas finished on a long ball from Liz Adams to put the Falcons up 3-1.
“Everyone contributed in this win,” said Falcon coach Paul Arand. “Natasha Kamps made some courageous stops in the goal box and the defense stood its ground under pressure, while our midfield worked hard to win the ball and support our offense.”
Things didn’t go as well Thursday in the Falcon’s first appearance at home. In their second league contest, Cedarcrest managed a smooth 5-0 victory, but they had to fight for it.
The Red Wolf teammates are noted for year-round playing in mainland leagues and their experience showed on the field.
Most of the action in the first 15 minutes centered on the Falcons’ goal as Cedarcrest attempted to penetrate the defense. South Whidbey’s Christine Johnson and goalie Kamps made excellent saves, maintaining security in front of the net.
But with 18:53 left in the half, Shannon Craig was called for a hand ball in the box, an inadvertent move on her part, for which she was penalized.
The Red Wolf injured party got a free kick directly into the net that Kamps almost saved, and Cedarcrest moved ahead 1-0.
“At first we were able to meet them athletically,” Arand said. “But their training, experience and some bad fortune let them score.”
One concern is support of the forwards. Shortly after the Red Wolves scored, Gwen Bakke broke out and brought the ball to the Cedarcrest net. She fired the ball and missed‚ though she was close but found herself alone and couldn’t properly follow up. Forwards Bakke, Thomas and Robinson several times found themselves surrounded while their teammates were still at mid-field.
With 9:35 left in the half, Red Wolf Anne Kearney scored to make it 2-0, then again after a close prevention dive by Robinson failed. A fourth goal came just before the break to make it 4-0.
The Falcon defense tightened considerably in the second half, stopping all but one of Cedarcrest’s offensive plays.
Despite the loss, Arand said ball movement is improving and he is pleased with the defense.
“We need to work on getting the right mental attitude and learn to make decisions even when you don’t have the ball,” he said. “But the girls didn’t let down at the end, and that is certainly something solid to build on.”
Next week the team travels to Sultan and Kings, then welcomes Granite Falls at 2 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 27.
