Coastal Youth
A10 The News Guard
October 24, 2012
Tigers making a statement in girls soccer JIM FOSSUM The News Guard
Saying her team is playing with purpose, Taft High girls soccer coach Danyel Scott hopes a split of two games last week will position her team for a playoff spot as the season winds down. Taft, 3-6-0 overall, defeated Stayton 2-1 on Tuesday, Oct. 16, then lost a home game 4-0 to Philomath on Thursday, Oct. 18, to stand 2-4-0 and in third place in the Oregon West Conference. “The girls have been coming out strong the last two weeks,” Scott said. “I think after the win against Central [4-2 on Oct. 2] they have finally realized they can do this.” Senior captains Alexandria Scott and Catherine Mina scored goals Tuesday as the Tigers outplayed the Eagles before being shut out at home two days later. “We went into the week in Stayton [a 3-1 winner over the Tigers on Sept. 25] ready for vengeance,” Scott said. “They played hard the whole time. I think our opponents were pretty surprised.”
JIM FOSSUM/THE NEWS GUARD
Taft seniors Michala Barton, top photo, and Robin Long, right, have played integral parts in helping the Tigers on the field this season. Scott said the Tigers passed well, attacked aggressively and probably should have won more decisively against the Eagles (3-7-0, 1-4-0). “It could have been even more in our favor, but we had a hard time following through to the goal with the 5-4-1 stance,” she said. “With just one lone striker up there, it makes it hard to get a strong play to the goal. My objective was to keep that stance, though, and
protect our goal. I wanted to protect and try and launch the ball up over their defense to Mina, our only striker.” Before Mina scored, Scott gave Taft a 1-0 lead with a first-half goal she brought down to the ground with a header. “We felt good about it, but knew they would bring a battle the second half and they did,” Scott said of Stayton, which answered the goal early in the second
period. Mina responded with the game-winning breakaway score with 12 minutes left on a shot she flicked over the goalie’s head. Taft failed to keep the momentum building in being shut down at home on Thursday against the Warriors (9-3-0, 6-0-0), however. “I think every time we play Philomath — no matter the year, place or time — we
go into bunker mode,” Scott said. “We know they are the best team in 4A state.” After our last game against them where we were annihilated [a 12-0 defeat on Sept. 27], we knew we had to protect our home goal a lot better,” she said. Taft is at Central (3-6-1, 1-4-1) on Tuesday, Oct. 23, and hosts Cascade (3-4-3, 3-1-1) on Senior Night at 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 30.
“We have been playing hard, focused and with all of their hearts,” Scott said. “They have gone out there and played every game significantly better than the one before. That is all that I can ask for. Our team is developing the confidence and experience that we have lacked in the last few years and it is showing on the field.”
Newport Cubs kick back at rival Tigers JIM FOSSUM The News Guard
Imagine Taft senior Tyler Lopez’s surprise when his coach turned to him and asked if he thought he could make a 29-yard field goal in overtime to possibly win a league game against his school’s biggest rival. It wasn’t that a short potential game-winning field goal in a 20-17 Oregon West Conference overtime loss at Newport on Friday, Oct. 19, was such a daunting task. But given that first-year Taft coach Perry Herbst hadn’t tried a field goal of any kind in 17 years of coaching, it was hardly what Lopez– never mind anyone else– expected. The Tigers don’t even kick extra points, let alone field goal attempts. “I’m not a big field goal guy,” Herbst said. “I mean, I even go for two every time because the percentages are in my favor.” Despite his disdain for kicking and his players’ dismay at his calling for a three-point attempt, Lopez told Herbst he could make it
JIM FOSSUM/THE NEWS GUARD
Taft’s Keanu Eastman, shown in a game earlier this season, will be among the seniors who will play their final game for the Tigers on Friday against Cascade at Voris Field. and did, placing the pressure on the Tigers to keep Newport out of the end zone on its ensuing possession in what was now a 17-14 Taft lead. “He went out and did his job and we put it in the hands of our defense,” Herbst said. However, Newport (5-3 overall, 3-1 Oregon West) took the second handoff of its overtime possession and burst into the end zone for
the deciding score. “We had 4th-and-10, and I thought, ‘You know what; we’re playing great defense, but it’s tight now and we should probably kick a field goal,” Herbst said. “He’s been practicing it the last two weeks, so I called time out and I said, ‘Hey, Tyler, can you make a field goal here,’ and he looked at me and said, ‘Well, yeah, let’s go kick a field goal. That’s something we haven’t
tried.”’ This time, however, the defense failed him and Taft fell to 1-7 overall and 1-3 in
conference. “It’s just one of those things where you have to have some luck with you,” Herbst said. Luck had much less to do with it when Taft built a 14-0 second-quarter lead before the Cubs made it 14-7 at the half. Senior Brent Martin put the Tigers on top 6-0 on a 4-yard run to start the scoring before Lopez scored the Tigers’ second touchdown on a 5-yard run after a bad snap sailed over the Newport punter’s head. Lopez’s twin brother, Skyler, caught a 2-point conversion pass from quarterback Seth Steere for the second score and the 14-7 halftime edge. “It was just a hard-fought battle,” Herbst said. “I hope the kids learned from this, that our young kids watch-
ing it see how it played out to see what they need to do to put games away.” Herbst cited outside linebackers Skyler Lopez and Tyler Henson and middle backer Trevor Knott for clogging up the middle and maintaining outside pursuit in holding Newport in check. “We did a heck of a job flowing to the ball,” Herbst said. “Our defense got to the ball and took away the deep ball from them, For the most part, our pass defense was solid. We had our opportunities. Our kids were right there where they needed to be.” Taft returns to action Friday at 7 p.m. against Cascade (7-1, 3-1) in the regular-season finale at Voris Field.
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