Despite playing short-handed with a relatively young squad, the Liberty Bell High School girls’ soccer team launched its season with a solid 3-1 win at Omak on Sept. 6.
Coach Lincoln Post said that only 13 players were eligible out of 21 on the team because of the requirement that players participate in at least 10 practices before competing. But several Lady Lions playing in their first varsity game made important contributions, Post said.
“It was great to start our season. We had three of our four defenders in their first game ever and it was fun to watch their learning curve through the course of the game,” Post said. “I was pleased to see the whole team work together with possession and passing. We created a lot of scoring opportunities.”
Omak scored first, but Liberty Bell senior Sally Thornton White answered with a goal to tie the game at 1-1. Tommie Ochoa added a penalty kick goal to give Liberty Bell a 2-1 lead that it did not surrender. Cymone Van Marter added a third score for Liberty Bell, and Ochoa and Ali Palm each played a half as goalkeeper and kept Omak at bay.
“Almost half our team are freshmen and they played really well for us in our opener,” Post said. “Chloe Sprauer, Jess Dinham and Mariah Lucy on defense, Sophia Newton and eighth-grader Adee Smith in the midfield, and Elka Wathen as a forward all played really well and will be important players for us this season.”
Liberty Bell hosted Bridgeport on Tuesday (Sept. 11) and will play at Manson on Thursday (Sept. 13). Brewster will visit Liberty Bell next Tuesday (Sept. 18), with play starting at 4:30 p.m.
The Lady Lions finished the 2017 season with a 13-5 record and just missed a trip to the state championship finals. Post was named coach of the year for the second consecutive year, and Liberty Bell again won the sportsmanship award. The Lady Lions lost nine seniors to graduation. Thornton White was named to the 2017 all-league first team, while Palm and Ochoa took second-team honors.
