MONTESANO–The Montesano Bulldogs girls soccer team has reasserted itself as one of the top programs in the 1A class after earning another trip to the state’s Final Four.
The fourth-seeded Bulldogs defeated No. 5 Cashmere 1-0 in a hotly-contested 1A State Tournament quarterfinal matchup on Saturday in Montesano to advance to their unprecedented fourth state semifinal in the past five seasons.
“Four out of five final fours is pretty hard to do,” Montesano head coach Fidel Sanchez said. “And for a public school to do that, that is awesome. Our girls are just a bunch of studs.”
As expected deep in the state tournament, Monte (16-2-2 overall) had to fight for it as Cashmere (19-2) stressed the Montesano defense with an 8-6 shot advantage throughout the first half.
“Cashmere brought it to us,” Sanchez said, noting in film study, Cashmere was typically a slow-starter. “Every time we studied the film, that’s not the Cashmere team we saw. So hats off to Cashmere. They fought like crazy. But our girls withstood the fight, stayed in the game and were able to get the game-winner.”
Locked in a scoreless tie at halftime and through the first 15 minutes of the second half, it was Montesano’s all-state caliber forward tandem of junior Jaelyn Butterfield and senior Lex Stanfield that produced what would turn out to be the game’s only goal.
Stanfield sent a ball forward to Butterfield, who shot it off a bounce from approximately 15-yards out past the oncoming goal keeper and into the net for a 1-0 lead in the 55th minute.
PHOTO BY FOREST WORGUM Montesano’s (from left) Olivia Reynvaan, Lex Stanfield, Jaelyn Butterfield and Lainey Robinson celebrate Butterfield’s goal in the second half of a 1-0 victory over Cashmere in a 1A State Tournament quarterfinal game on Saturday in Montesano.
Monte keeper Izzie Taylor and the Bulldogs defense did the rest, holding Cashmere to just two shots over the final 29 minutes of the game – one of those being a scary chance on an open net that sailed wide after Taylor took a bump in the head – to secure the victory and another spot for Montesano in the state semifinals.
“We as coaches met before the game and said, ‘If we get up early or late in the game, we have a plan,’” Sanchez said. “As soon as we got that lead, we waited until the 72nd minute and went to a 4-5-1 formation and we held the lead. It nearly cost us, but nonetheless, we went in defensive mode and were able to hold them off. It was a great feeling.”
Cashmere had 12 shots to nine for Montesano, but the Monte defense kept shots from getting through to Taylor. Just three Cashmere shots were on-goal compared to six for Montesano.
Taylor made five saves to secure her second shutout of the state tournament.
PHOTO BY FOREST WORGUM Montesano defender Emilay Kuntz (right) defends a shot by Cashmere’s Gwen Ledesma during Monte’s 1-0 victory in a 1A State Tournament quarterfinal game on Saturday at Jack Rottle Field in Montesano.
With the victory, Montesano will face a familiar opponent in top-seeded Cedar Park Christian at 7 p.m. Friday at Federal Way Memorial Stadium.
Montesano’s lone loss during the regular season came at the hands of the Eagles (17-3-1), a 3-0 defeat in the second game of the season.
But Montesano was without both Butterfield and Stanfield for that game, a fact likely not lost on the Eagles.
“They better know (we didn’t have Butterfield and Stanfield) or we’re going to make them pay,” Sanchez said.
Reaching four final fours in five years is a rarity in the 1A class as teams that have gone on to multiple state-title runs – such as Klahowya in recent seasons – have not reached four state semis in five seasons.
PHOTO BY FOREST WORGUM The Montesano sideline erupts at the conclusion of a 1-0 win over Cashmere in a 1A State Tournament quarterfinal game on Saturday at Jack Rottle Field in Montesano.
“Four out of five is unheard of,” Sanchez said. “No other team, private or public, has done this. … Every other school in the tournament has club players. We don’t have those players. We make them at Montesano. We make them club players in the summer. From the very first Final Four to now, we have been consistent in developing players and our program is the most consistent in the state of Washington in the 1A ranks of how to get to the Final Four. A public school, not a private school.”
Cashmere 0 0 – 0
Montesano 0 1 – 1
Scoring
First half – none.
Second half – 1, Montesano, Butterfield (Stanfield), 55th minute.
PHOTO BY FOREST WORGUM The Montesano Bulldogs pose for a photo after defeating Cashmere 1-0 in a 1A State Tournament quarterfinal game on Saturday at Jack Rottle Field in Montesano.
