Wood River High School junior forward Tanner Dredge doesn't need much of an opening to break loose and score.
She's been remarkably consistent in putting the ball in the net the last two seasons—scoring in 18 of the last 25 Hailey soccer games.
Dredge pulled the trigger at the most opportune time Saturday, tucking home the equalizer with 15 minutes left in the game as Wood River earned a 2-2 tie with the Highland Rams in its home debut at Hailey's South Valley Soccer Complex.
It was Dredge's second goal of the game, the first coming at the 21-minute mark of the first half when she beat Highland defender Alyssa Hopster and made it 1-0 Wood River. Hopster and Dredge battled back and forth all day, and Dredge had to earn everything she got.
Highland coach Carlos Flores said, "I thought Alyssa's speed and quickness pretty much canceled out the speed and quickness of their player (Dredge). Really, the game could have gone either way. Both teams played well. We stayed after them and battled the whole game."
The unbeaten Rams (3-0-1) entered Saturday's game after rallying for a 2-1 home win over a highly regarded Twin Falls team (2-1-2) last Wednesday. Highland had also beaten Blackfoot and Canyon Ridge of Twin Falls by an 11-0 score.
So the Rams provided a legitimate challenge—one that Wood River met head on. Hailey's coach Jenni Conrad said, "This was a crux game for us, a turning point, and I thought it was the first time we played as a team. We dug deep at the end."
Excellent ball control in the first 20 minutes of the opening half helped Wood River out-shoot Highland 9-6 in the first half including 8-1 in corner kicks. "We controlled the ball, kept possession, switched the point of attack and linked our backs and midfielders to our strikers," Conrad said.
After Dredge's first goal, however, "we stopped moving and Highland started winning the 50-50s," said Conrad. Highland coach Flores agreed. He said, "It's a long drive and we started out a little flat." Highland out-shot Wood River 9-3 in the final 60 minutes of Saturday's game.
On Highland's fourth shot of the game, striker Yizzar Jamiece got behind the Wolverine defense and beat goalkeeper Madison Gove (8 saves) at 32 minutes. The score stayed 1-1 at half because, in a mob of players after a Rams corner kick, Hailey freshman defender Maggie Williams alertly cleared away a ball that was perched on the goal line.
At 52 minutes, Jamiece passed to Kara Wadsworth, who made it 2-1 for Highland. But Wood River sophomore Kaitana Martinez booted the ball down the middle to Dredge at 65 minutes, and Dredge found a seam for her game-tying goal. Sophomore Maddie Bates led the Wolverine defense that hung tough.
Wood River (1-2-1, 1-0-0 league) tries to improve its Great Basin Conference position today, Wednesday when Minico visits Hailey for a 4:30 p.m. game. The Wolverines travel to Burley this Saturday.
A big game arrives Monday, Sept. 14 when Wood River travels to Twin Falls for the first of two meetings between the two expected frontrunners in the Great Basin race.
WRHS boys blank Highland 2-0 in Pokey
The 2009 season is still young, but the Wood River High School boys' varsity soccer team already has two shutouts to its credit after Saturday's 2-0 road triumph over the Highland Rams in Pocatello.
Dominating the attack for much of the 80-minute non-conference game, 4A Wood River (2-1-1, 0-1-0 league) scored two goals in the final 10 minutes. Senior Hector Lopez scored both, from Bryan Donoso.
Wood River (10 corner kicks) finished with 20 shots on goal and its goalkeeper Colter Brehmer (2 saves) was rarely tested. Coach Luis Monjaras said, "The whole team played well together. We were real solid on the ground and connecting well."
Monjaras added the Wolverine defense was committed to keeping Highland from mounting attacks on Brehmer. He said, "The boys are more confident now. They know what they need to do to improve and that's what we'll be working on."
Highland will visit Hailey Sept. 26. Before that, however, the Wolverines will have the bulk of their Great Basin Conference schedule—six games in two weeks.
The league challenges start today, Wednesday when Wood River visits Minico (0-3-2, 0-1-1) at Rupert.
Minico lost many seniors from last year's squad, but first-team All-League striker Jorge Carillo returns. Minico lost 7-1 at Jerome (6-0-0, 2-0-0) on Friday and the Spartans also tied 2-2 with Canyon Ridge (0-3-2, 0-0-1) last Wednesday.
In another big game today, Wednesday, Jerome visits Twin Falls (2-3-0, 1-0-0 league). Twin Falls won 8-0 at home over Highland last Wednesday. On Saturday, Sept. 12, Wood River gets its first look at coach Wes Nyblade's Burley squad, at 11 a.m. on the Hailey pitch.
