6A DISTRICT 1 GIRLS SOCCER: Challenge completed ... Lake City wins third game, advances to state for 12th straight year

By JASON ELLIOTT 

Sports writer 

COEUR d’ALENE — Leading 1-0 at halftime, Lake City coach Matt Ruchti told his team simply that it hadn’t done anything yet. 

So, in a winner-take-all game, the Timberwolves got going. 

Sophomores Addyson Kerley and Riley Brazle scored goals in the second half for the top-seeded Timberwolves, who beat the second-seeded Coeur d’Alene Vikings 3-0 in the deciding game of a best-of-3 series for the 6A District 1 girls soccer championship at the Irma Anderl Soccer Complex at Lake City High on Thursday. 

Kerley scored in the 57th minute on an assist from sophomore Chloe Burkholder, who scored in the 30th minute to give Lake City a 1-0 halftime lead. 

“I was looking for that ball that Chloe sent in,” said Kerley, a midfielder. “I was just trying to find an opening and put it through. Our team, we have this feeling that we can go out and play together and continue as a family.” 

Lake City (12-3-2) won its 12th straight regional/district title and will appear at state for the 16th straight season. Coeur d’Alene, bidding for its first trip to state since 2019, finished 3-13-2. Lake City is currently sixth in the latest MaxPreps.com rankings, which are used to seed the state tournament. Matchups will be announced this weekend.

“The effort in the first half was what we thought it would be,” Lake City coach Matt Ruchti said. “We knew we had a great opportunity to wear them down. I just told them, ‘if you get into the second half, history and tradition will take over.’ And that’s exactly what happens. We’ve got great players, but they love playing with each other.” 

Lake City beat Coeur d’Alene 2-0 at Viking Field on Tuesday to force the deciding game in the series to determine the lone berth to state in the two-team league. 

“Our defense each game, especially against Coeur d’Alene, worked so hard to get to every ball,” said Burkholder, a midfielder. “Our keeper Savvy (Spencer) works so hard and saves us in a lot of big moments. And you need that in a team and it’s just nice to have that.” 

Coeur d’Alene beat Lake City 2-1 last Saturday in the first game. 

“They got shook a little bit a couple of days ago, and it just galvanized them,” Ruchti said. “We haven’t been in that situation in a long time, and we challenged them, and they stepped up as a program. Not just the players that are here, but our bench. We’ve got 25 to 30 kids that are coming to practice each day and it’s a family. They know it’s about the work they put in, and when they do that, good things will happen.” 

“It was a battle,” Coeur d’Alene coach Andy Vredenburg said. “They capitalized on their chances and unfortunately, we didn’t get our chances in. That’s how it rolls.” 

In five meetings this season, Lake City won four times, all by shutout. 

“It basically comes down to who wants it more and executes,” Vredenburg said. “Today, it was Lake City. They just executed better than us.” 

It was the third time the teams had played in the last six days.

“You can tweak some things,” Ruchti said. “I was really bad as a coach a few days ago and needed to get back to what my matchups were and do a little more homework and put players in positions to be successful. And that’s my job and I thought we had a good rotation the last two games and we got back to where players recognized what their jobs were. And each player did their job, and the players on the bench were outstanding pushing them over the edge.” 

First half — 1, LC, Chloe Burkholder (unassisted), 29:29. Second half — 2, LC, Addyson Kerley (Burkholder), 57:00. 3, LC, Riley Brazle (Ava Roberts), 68:00. 

Shots on goal — Cd’A 3, LC 8. 

Saves — Cd’A, Macy Walters 5; LC, Savvy Spencer 3. 

    JASON ELLIOTT/Press Lake City sophomore midfielder Addyson Kerley gets past Coeur d'Alene sophomore defender Makaela Randall during the second half of Thursday's 6A District 1 tournament match at the Irma Anderl Soccer Complex.