THE FRONT ROW WITH JASON ELLIOTT: Wednesday, October 28, 2015
Lake City High boys soccer coach Chad Beadell stressed that it was important for his team to make a little a noise at the state tournament this year.
Apparently each of the other squads heading south had that same message last weekend.
FIVE OF the six teams that traveled to the state tournament in their respective classifications brought home trophies, with three teams finishing second and two finishing third.
Just incredible.
Lake City’s girls (5A) and Coeur d’Alene Charter’s girls (3A) each lost in championship games, and Lakeland’s boys fell in the state 4A boys soccer final.
“If the boys were nervous, it didn’t show too much,” fourth-year Lakeland coach Andrew Craig said after the title game. “I think they were confident heading into the game and moved the ball really well. There was just a mistake on defense and it happens sometimes in sports. I’m proud of the boys for staying composed and fighting until the end of the match. They gave everything they had and it was a good season.”
Lakeland had won 12 straight games heading into the title match — including one over Lake City — no small feat at all.
Senior Daniel McDevitt, who played on the school’s third place finisher in 2013, had Lakeland’s only goal in the title match.
“There’s been some tough times, but everyone stayed with it,” McDevitt said. “A lot of us have been playing together since U-10. We just stuck together through thick and thin. I wish we could have gotten this win. But our season, it’s a credit to these guys.”
Coeur d’Alene Charter’s girls — who won the 2014 state 3A title — finished runner-up in the Panthers’ third straight trip to state. Even more impressive, they’ve only had a soccer program four years.
“We have tried to make sure that the players understand the strengths and weaknesses of the teams we play and the opportunities that might present themselves,” Coeur d’Alene Charter coach Dave Baxter said. “We have also tried to have a good off the field plan so that the players are rested and in the right state of mind when they take the field.”
AFTER SETBACKS in semifinal games, both the Lake City boys and Timberlake girls found a way to bring back third-place finishes with senior heavy teams.
“It was really everybody that made this happen,” Timberlake coach Steve Michael said. “It was just a hard-fought game and we were down the entire first half. Our seniors helped our younger players not lose their composure and not forget who we are, which was kind of nice to have. It was nice to have that kind of leadership on the team.”
“It’s all of them,” Beadell said. “Our seniors get us going. They put in way too much work not to bring a trophy home.”
Fortunately for everyone involved, the work paid off in a big way.
Maybe not with the trophy that most wanted, but nothing to be upset about.
Jason Elliott is a sports writer for the Coeur d’Alene Press. He can be reached by telephone at 664-8176, Ext. 2020 or via email at jelliott@cdapress.com. Follow him on Twitter @JEPressSports.