Blue Hawks finish inaugural soccer season

by Skye Barker-Hill

THOMPSON FALLS 2, BIGFORK 0

The Plains/Thompson Falls Blue Hawk soccer team hit the road taking on the Bigfork Vikings taking the win 2-1.

The Hawks came out on fire and within the first eight minutes of game play, Andrew Wrobleski was able to find the goal. While the Vikings tried to answer with their own goal they were met with Hawk keeper Jacob Howell who was able to put a stop to the ball. Hawk Will Grenda was able to get a direct kick and found the goal for Thompson’s second goal of the game. With the Hawks up 2-0 keeper Howell was swift in keeping Bigfork out of the goal. The teams would go up and down the field until with minutes left the Vikings were able to score their only goal of the game.

Coming back from the half both teams fought to get the ball in the net, but the Vikings couldn’t get past the keeper. The Hawks also pushed down field trying to put more points between the teams, but they would be unable to. Thompson would keep the lead and would take the on road win.

“Our boys did such a great job of carrying out the game plan as well as stopping their attack. They played with grit and grinded the whole 80 minutes! I am so proud of these boys,” said head coach Michael Scharfe.

THOMPSON FALLS 0, BIGFORK 10

The Lady Hawks of Plains/Thompson/St. Regis had their chance at the Bigfork Valkyries falling 10-0.

Bigfork came out on fire and was quick to gain the first goal, while the Hawks tried to answer with their own they were stopped by the Valkyries keeper. Bigfork was able to gain another goal before the Hawks could stop it, putting pressure on the Hawks.

In the second half, the Hawks were close to gaining the first goal but was stopped by the Valkyries keeper. The teams would fight back and forth for much of the second half, keeping each other's keepers on their toes. But with 13 minutes left Bigfork was able to get past the Hawk keeper for another goal, and two minutes later they would find the goal again to take the mercy rule win.

WHITEFISH 6, THOMPSON FALLS 1

Then the Plains/Thompson Falls Blue Hawks took to the road one last time taking on the Whitefish Bulldogs falling 6-1.

The Bulldogs came out of the cage and would quickly gain the first goal, getting past the tight Hawk defense. While Thompson tried to answer back they were unable, and Whitefish was able to gain another goal. The Hawks would up their already aggressive defense and would keep the Bulldogs to only one more goal before the half.

Coming back from the half the Hawks had a new fire and Will Grenda was able to find the goal for Thompsons’ first goal of the game. The Bulldogs were swift to answer with their own goal keeping them in the lead. While the Hawk keeper Jacob Howell had several saves including a difficult penalty save, he would let one more Bulldog goal slip past him. The Bulldogs would gain one more goal before the end of the game to seal the win.

“Making a save on a penalty kick is one of the hardest things for a keeper to do, they have to time their movement and direction just right and Jacob did just that on a textbook save! I don’t think the score does justice to how well Jacob played as keeper in the game as he made numerous impressive saves throughout the game,” said coach Michael Scharfe.

“We improved and grew so much this season and even though we will not be going to playoffs this year I am so proud of these boys and how much they improved throughout the season, we’ve forever cemented our place in history! A big thank you to all the parents, fans, businesses, and community members who helped us make this season a reality. Your support and encouragement this year is very much appreciated.” Scharfe said of his team.

WHITEFISH 3, THOMPSON FALLS 0

The Plains/Thompson/St. Regis Lady Hawks had their turn with the Whitefish Lady Bulldogs, falling 3-0.

The teams would fight for yards to start the game, going up and down the field until the Bulldogs were able to gain the first goal. While the Hawk offense tried to get past the Bulldog defense to answer with their own goal they were unable. The teams would go back to fighting for each yard gained for most of the first half, but the Bulldogs were able to find the goal once more before the half.

The Hawks would only allow the Bulldogs to gain one more goal while putting their cleats to the ground. While the Hawks were able to keep Whitefish from gaining anymore goals, they were unable to gain any themselves before the end of the game, and the Bulldogs would take the at home win.

THOMPSON FALLS 3, LIBBY 3

The Plains/Thompson Falls boys soccer team hosted their last home game of the regular season on October 10, having a draw with the Libby Loggers.

Quickly the Loggers came out and would find the net to gain the first goal. While the Hawk offense tried to get past the Loggers, they were unable to answer with their own goal. The teams would go up and down the field before Libby was once again able to find the goal to put them up 2-0. The Hawks upped their defense and would keep the Loggers from scoring for much of the first quarter, while trying to gain their own goals. But with minutes left Libby found the back of the net once more.

Coming back from the half the Hawks found their groove and Will Grenda was able to find the back of the net quickly. Before the Loggers had a chance to answer back, Zac Palacios was also able to find the net to put the score within one. Thompson upped their defense and would keep the Loggers scoreless in the second half. When a handball penalty allowed Grenda the chance to tie the game, he never faltered and was able to tie the game 3-3 with mere seconds left.

“Although the game was a tie we left that field feeling like champions. I am so proud of these boys and the grit they showed to stick with it and finish well!” said Head Coach Michael Scharfe.

THOMPSON FALLS 2, LIBBY 2

It was the Lady Hawks turn at the Libby Loggers ending also in a draw 2-2.

The girls were able to feed off the high energy from the exciting boys game and came out putting extreme pressure on the Loggers. It would be Libby that would get the ball past Hawk keeper Ava Lawyer for their first goal. The teams would fight back and forth before, with minutes left, Katherine Wrobleski found a pocket of space and was able to find the net for the first Hawk goal before the half.

With the game tied after the half, both teams came back with new fire.The Loggers who would score their second goal early. Then Hawk Solveig Nygaard was able to find a pocket of space and blasted the ball into the back of the net to tie the game.

“This was our most competitive game of the year. In the end, it wasn't meant to be, but I think it shows the fight and resiliency of our team to have gone behind twice and fought back to tie the game. This really was triple-espresso-soccer. There was not a single moment for anyone to catch their breath, and you could see the electricity on the field and field players' energy from the sidelines,” said head coach Nick Lawyer.