It was a winning afternoon in dramatic fashion for the Community School boys’ varsity soccer team Saturday.
The Community School boys (6-1-1, 3-1-1 league) scored a thrilling 2-1 win over 4A power Burley at Elkhorn’s Browning Field when sophomore Jay Fitzgerald drilled the game-winning goal in the 80th and final minute.
It was Fitzgerald’s second goal of the game, ninth of the season—and sixth in the last three contests. Coach Richard Whitelaw’s “Man of the Match” was left fullback Reed Roudabush. Whitelaw added that it was his team’s first match against Burley in 14 years, since 1999 when the visiting Cutthroats won 2-0.
The Cutthroats visited league-leading Wendell Tuesday, Sept. 17 and entertain Buhl (3-2-2, 3-1-1) on Thursday, Sept. 19 at 6 p.m. The Sun Valley boys are scheduled to host 4A Wood River Friday, Sept. 20 at 4:30 p.m. at Browning Field.
Stormy Thursday soccer action
Downpours of rain along with lightning were challenges faced by the Cutthroat and Filer soccer teams during two High Desert Soccer Conference games Thursday at Elkhorn.
The Cutthroats, playing at home for the first time this season, won both the girls’ and boys’ varsity games—the girls 5-0 over Filer and the boys by an 8-1 count. The officials ended the boys’ game 12 minutes into the second half due to lightning.
In the preliminary girls’ game on the lower Sagewillow Farms pitch, the unbeaten Cutthroat and Wildcat girls played in driving rain for the final 15 minutes of the first half. Lightning interrupted the second half at the 55-minute mark and the teams waited the requisite 30 minutes before continuing.
Filer came to Sun Valley with a 6-0-1 record and, led by the scoring of Darby Robertson, had four HDSC wins in four games. The game was a rematch of last year’s HDSC tournament title game won by the Cutthroats 7-0.
This year’s first of two regular-season meetings between the contending teams lived up to its hype in the first half as Filer’s defense led by sweeper Anna Williams kept the 8-goal-per-game Cutthroat offense mostly in check. The rain slowed everything.
Only a well-aimed free kick by senior Jordan Fitzgerald managed to go into the net and the Cutthroats led 1-0 at intermission despite having a 7-1 shooting advantage. Unfortunately, Filer goalkeeper Brynlee Wells injured her ankle 17 minutes into the game and didn’t return. Filer coach Shane Hild replaced her was Chelsie Mansfield (6 saves).
The heavy rain passed by the resumption of play in the second half and Cutthroat all-time leading scorer Hannah Dies (13 goals season, 84 career) broke free for two goals in the first 14 minutes for a 3-0 cushion.
Dies, a senior striker, dribbled past sweeper Williams for her first goal at 47 minutes and she took a lead pass from Fitzgerald to go in alone at 54 minutes. Keeper Mansfield got a hand on the Dies shot but the well-struck ball still went in.
Filer put together several strong offensive attacks led by Robertson after the lightning-delay ended.
But the Cutthroats scored next when a cross pass from Dies found the foot of sophomore Autumn Fluetsch, who redirected it into the goal at 65 minutes. A timely drop pass by junior Isabelle Caraluzzi went to Lilly Jenner at the top of box, and Jenner drilled the fifth and final goal at 72 minutes.
The Cutthroats out-shot Filer 11-5 in the second half and 18-6 overall ending Filer’s five-game winning streak. Sophomore Jenner (7 goals season, 23 career) has now scored at least one goal in 18 of her 25 Cutthroat games. Four-year starter Dies has scored in 37 of her 61 games.
Cutthroat coach Kelly Feldman appreciated the strong challenge provided by Filer. She said that several injured Cutthroats didn’t play including senior Whitney Engelmann, who has 22 career goals. Feldman’s “Player of the Game” was sophomore Emily Siegel.
Because the weather-delayed girls’ game didn’t finish until 6:30 p.m., the Cutthroat-Wildcat boys’ game using the same officials didn’t start on the upper Browning Field until nearly 6:50 p.m.—about 50 minutes later than the schedule.
Yet coach Richard Whitelaw’s Cutthroat boys were raring to put their 4.6-goal-per-game offense into gear and scored two goals in the first nine minutes.
Senior Bobby Corker passed to sophomore Fitzgerald for the first goal at eight minutes. Fitzgerald intercepted a Filer goal kick and walked in alone about 60 seconds later for a 1-0 lead. Fitzgerald completed his three-goal hat trick in the first half to earn his “Man of the Match” honor.
Junior Tanner Josey celebrated his birthday by scoring his first-ever varsity goal. Other Cutthroat goal scorers were Corker, Dehner Figge, Tom Gillespie and Johnny Blackburn.
The Cutthroat girls (5-0-0, 5-0-0 league, 15 points) traveled to Wendell Tuesday, Sept. 17 and host Buhl Thursday, Sept. 19 at 4:30 p.m. at Sagewillow Farms in Elkhorn. The non-conference game against the Wood River girls is set for Friday, Sept. 20 at 4:30 p.m. on the Hailey field.
Community School sophomore midfielder Jay Fitzgerald, shooting here against Burley Saturday, was the game’s star with two goals including the game winner. Here, he lines up his decisive shot. Photo by Roland Lane
