Elaine Walker, center, celebrated a goal against Manson with teammates Anya Merkens, left, and Lena Frady.
Resilience would be an apt description of Liberty Bell High School’s 3-3 draw with the Pioneers at Omak High School in girls’ soccer competition on Sept. 21.
Liberty Bell fell behind on an Omak penalty kick goal late in the first half, then gave up a second tally about 10 minutes into the second half and found themselves down two goals and momentum with the home team.
But, there are 80 minutes in a high school soccer match and in minute 53 junior captain Anya Merkens sent a rocket into the net, giving the Mountain Lions a needed lift and turning the tide on the Pioneers. It only took six minutes before Merkens sent a pass to senior Taylor Hover, who sent the ball passed the Omak goalkeeper to knot the match at 2-2.
“This is something we never achieved last year,” said coach Kelly Grayum of the two-goal comeback. “It demonstrates the positive mindset and the confidence that this group has. It was a great opportunity for them to experience playing from behind and getting themselves back into the game.”
The Liberty Bell girls had another opportunity to display resilience a few minutes later.
The Pioneers got off a long shot off in minute 70 that evaded goalkeeper Lucia Troyer, putting Omak up 3-2. But just a couple of minutes later, senior Pepper Treise took a corner kick from Elaine Walker and shot the ball into the goal for her first career score and the match equalizer at 3-3.
The Mountain Lions had a bit of an offensive advantage with more shots on goal, complimented by the solid work in the Lions’ goal area by Troyer, who stopped 10 shots.
Through the first seven matches of this season, the Mountain Lions have seen eight different players score goals. “I think this is one of our superpowers this year. Everyone feels like they can contribute,” Grayum said.
At Liberty Bell 7, Manson 0
Sophomore Skye Boley registered the first Mountain Lion hat trick of the season, scoring all three of her goals in the first half and leading Liberty Bell to five first-half goals in a 7-0 rout over the Manson Trojans on Sept. 25 at Mountain Lion Stadium.
Mabel Grayum, Adelina Humling and Elaine Walker each added to their goal totals with a tally apiece, and Nora Lewis became the ninth team member to get one into the opponent’s net this season with her first half goal.
The Mountain Lions dominated play, executing 31 shots on goal while not allowing the ball to get out of their own end.
The Mountain Lions entertained the Bridgeport Fillies on Tuesday (Sept. 29). They then travel to Coulee Dam to face the Lake Roosevelt Raiders.
Last Thursday’s scheduled match at Cascade was postponed as Liberty Bell had transportation issues. It has been rescheduled for Saturday at Cascade. Kickoff is 1 p.m. The Brewster Bears come to Liberty Bell on Tuesday, Oct. 6, for an important match that could have implications for the league tournament coming up in late October. Kickoff is at 4:30 p.m.
