For the week of September 18 - 24, 2002

In Hailey, 
girls tie one on

Cutthroats, Wolverines 
battle to 1-1 draw

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By JODY ZARKOS
Express Staff Writer

When push comes to shove, the Wood River High girls’ soccer team usually ends up doing the pushing.

This time, The Community School shoved back. The young Cutthroats unexpectedly played Wood River to a 1-1 tie in Hailey last Thursday.

On paper, it was an improbable outcome. The Cutthroats had three sophomores and two freshmen in their starting line-up of 11. In contrast, the Wolverines have just one sophomore on the varsity squad.

Ketchum/Sun Valley was also without the services of four starting players, and to make matters worse (on paper), Wood River had defeated Ketchum 9-0 in a junior varsity matchup the previous Tuesday.

In a small school like The Community School, however, the difference between varsity and jayvee is often just a few players. The only Cutthroat players to sit out Tuesday’s lopsided 9-0 JV game were Morgan Arritola, Erika Connelly, Jenny Rutherford and Cassidy Doucette.

Wood River (2-1-1) had every reason to feel confident, perhaps overly so, heading into the varsity match-up. After all, what difference can four players make?

A lot, apparently. The first half was scoreless, thanks to strong Cutthroat defense.

With Arritola at stopper, marking the dangerous Robin Kearns (filling in for an injured Krista Burns), and Connelly at sweeper, the Community School had a brutal one-two punch down the middle that forced the Wolverines to the outside.

Traffic on the wings was patrolled by petite Amy Alexander, who had the game of her life at left-half, and Jenny Rutherford on the right.

Backing them up were defenders, freshmen Carissa Connelly and sophomore Gussi Ochi of Sun Valley. They dug in against Wood River threats Rebecca Schwartzenberger, Charlotte Gourlay and Erin Northrop and did not allow an uncontested pass or shot in the opening stanza.

"I just stressed hard work and we always get that from them, especially against Wood River," Ketchum coach Kelly Feldman said.

The Wolverines managed just two legitimate shots in the first half, one coming off a free kick. At the other end, the Cutthroats fired four shots, including a left-footed blast by Rutherford just over the crossbar.

At half-time, assistant Cutthroat coach Mark Kranwinkle was heard to say, "That was the best half I have ever seen them play."

Wood River went back on the pitch quietly determined. But the Cutthroats cracked the scoreboard first, just eight minutes into play.

Alexander carried the ball down the left wing. Wolverine goalie Kelly Haisley got a hand on the cross, which deflected to Rutherford, who knocked it back at Haisley. Corrina Pidgeon punched the rebound up and over a diving Haisley for a 1-0 score.

On the very next play, the swift Rebecca Schwartzenberger jetted down the sideline and punched the ball in short side for a 1-1 tie.

"It was more in Wood River’s favor in the second half," Ketchum coach Kelly Feldman said. "We work so hard in the first half, and we just die in the second."

Hailey’s Gina Thomas did a terrific job at sweeper, utilizing her speed and passing ability to keep the ball in the Cutthroat’s half.

While both coaches thought their teams played hard, Feldman was jubilant with the result. Wood River coach Doug Stouffer was less so.

He said, "In big games, anything can happen. In my opinion we played hard. We just have to go to the next level and play smarter. We need to attack the other team’s weaknesses."

Meanwhile, reigning State 3A girls’ champion McCall/Donnelly bested a combined Wood River varsity/jayvee squad 3-0 in a pickup game at Mountain Home Saturday.

On Monday at Wendell, the Cutthroats (2-1-1) recorded a 6-0 victory over the Trojans. Erika Connelly and Cassidy Doucette scored two goals apiece. Jenny Rutherford and Amy Alexander tallied one goal each.

 

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