On Wednesday morning, the day before the Bainbridge High girls soccer team hosted undefeated and top-ranked Lakeside, coach Scott Druker said, “We turned the corner against Blanchet (last Thursday) in terms of what I wanted to see.”
Druker couldn’t have asked for a better sight the following afternoon as the Spartan girls mobbed each other at midfield after defeating the Lions 1-0. The victory avenged an earlier 3-0 defeat at Lakeside.
Lakeside came into the game with a 10-0-1 record that included 10 shutouts. During that stretch, the Lions outscored the opposition 42-2, with the only goals coming against Blanchet.
In addition, they had never trailed in a game. That streak ended four minutes into the second half when Maddie Ginder eluded a defender on the right side, then fired a shot toward the goal. The goalkeeper deflected it, but Alex Mynatt came running in to knock the ball into the goal.
As things turned out, that was enough as “the girls played an 80-minute game,” Druker said. “Our defense kept them from any quality scoring opportunities. I don’t feel that anybody had a weak game. Everyone played at par or above. We played good defense and made no mistakes. That was missing in the first half of the season.”
He singled out defender Lauren Tyner for particular praise. “She made some defensive plays, not just covering her mark but also others. And she had some perfect passes to create opportunities.”
On the offensive side, he noted that Kelly Crane “drew a lot of attention, which created space for other people. She made good solid decisions to keep the ball in their half. She put in a lot of mileage today.”
And goalie Devon Denis, in addition to making “a good grab” on a long shot in one of Lakeside’s few scoring opportunities, “did a great job. All her goalie kicks were good, and she did all the other little goalie-type stuff.”
The team warmed up for Thursday’s game by knocking off Chief Sealth 8-0 in a home game on Tuesday. The Sealth Seahawks were very nearly the anti-Lakeside, having scored in just two of their previous eight games as they brought a 1-7 mark into the game.
The victory halted a three-game stretch in which the Spartans lost to last year’s state tournament runnerup Seattle Prep 3-1, tied Ingraham 2-2, and dropped a 1-0 decision at Blanchet – the game that had been so encouraging to Druker.
The Spartans didn’t waste any time establishing their dominance over Chief Sealth. Christina Crowley scored in the third minute on a pass from Patricia Borgess, Mynatt scored five minutes later and Borgess hit the back of the net at the 12-minute mark. Five second half goals – the last two by Lauren Silvers – completed the scoring.
The two wins improved the Spartans’ season record to 6-5-1, vaulted them into second in the Metro League’s Mountain Division and increased the chances of qualifying for the Metro tournament that begins on Nov. 3. The top two teams automatically qualify for the state tournament, while the third-place team plays the KingCo runnerup in a “pigtail” game with the winner advancing.
But the Spartans can’t take anything for granted with four remaining games – at home against Eastside Catholic and Blanchet, on the road against Holy Names and Seattle Prep.
“It’s a funny division,” Druker said. “There’s not a big spread in the outcome of games. Everybody’s in the mix. But I feel confident based on the teams we’ve seen.
“And I’m hoping this game (Lakeside) is a springboard. I think it lit a firecracker under the girls.”
In JV action, Bainbridge defeated Lakeside 3-0 behind goals were scored by Courtney O’Dell, Haley Godfredtsen and Miranda Smith. Assists were provided by Morgan Moniz and Rowan Denis.
