Wasilla girls earn historic tie

JEREMIAH BARTZ/ Frontiersman Sports Editor

WASILLA - It was 2-for-1 day at Wasilla High School Thursday.

Fans got to see two completely different versions of the Warrior girls soccer squad as Wasilla battled back to earn a historic tie against Palmer.

Beck Hesselbach and Britta Hanson each scored in the second half as the Warriors stormed back to notch the 2-2 tie.

"We've never beaten Palmer. I think we've tied them one other time in our history," Wasilla head coach Katie Broeder said. "So coming out with a tie right now is huge for us."

Trailing 2-0 within the first minutes of the second half, Warrior striker Csesalie Lewis drove the ball up the right side of the field and fed a pass to Hesselbach. In traffic, Hesselbach booted the ball over the Palmer goalkeeper and cut the Warrior deficit to 2-1.

About 15 minutes later, Hanson picked up a loose ball in front of the Palmer net and slipped it right by the Moose goalkeeper.

"We came up real strong in the second half - made great passes, looked like a team," Broeder said. "We had good connections, good overlaps. We really took advantage of using our space and the long ball."

For the most part, Wasilla kept the pressure at its offensive end for most of the second half. Tarrah Naczi nearly posted another Wasilla score, deflecting a shot just to the right of the goal's crossbar.

While Wasilla controlled the pressure in the second half, Palmer did the same in the first.

"It's like two totally different games -the first and second half," Broeder said.

Leslie Berberich gave a Palmer a quick 1-0 lead and Joann Spannagel gave the Moose a 2-0 lead within the first 15 minutes of play.

As the Moose drove the ball up the right side, Berberich sliced across the middle and tapped a one-touch goal into the Wasilla net. Later in the first half, Spannagel coasted up the right side and deflected a shot off the hands of Wasilla goalkeeper Allie Johnson. The wet ball squirted out of the hands of Johnson in the misty Wasilla air and the Moose took a 2-0 lead.

"I felt we played well, especially in the first half," Palmer head coach Brian Fish said. "In the second half we were a little complacent. Maybe a little too comfortable? We came out in that second half and played flat. Wasilla turned the play and took it to us."

Depth could be the key to the success of the Warriors this season. Broeder listed Hesselbach, Lease and Hanson as leaders on the offensive end and Christine Cloud as a strength on defense, but said it is hard to chose just a few names from her list of talent.

"It's hard to pick, all 11 of my players are good," Broeder said. "Our team is very strong this year if we come out and play like a team."

Palmer was just a 1-0 loss to Colony shy of earning a state tournament berth last year, and Fish hopes a good mix of talent will propel the Moose into the 2005 state tourney.

"We've got a good mix up and down the board," Fish said. "Good youth and good experience. I'm excited about this group of kids."

Offensively the Moose are expected to be led by Berberich and Spannagel, while Katy Applin manages the Moose defense.

Colony boys 3, East 0

Knight senior exchange student Teemu Maki led Colony to a 3-0 nonconference win over the East Thunderbirds at Colony High School on Wednesday

Maki, a native of Finland, scored two goals and posted an assist.

Maki scored each of his goals in the first 45 minutes of play, while Jarrod Carney notched a score in the second half.