Boys soccer 6-3 on season
Senior Alex Mendez aims the ball toward the goal at Thursday’s game against St. Maries.
Badger Boys Begin IML With Three Wins
The Bonners Ferry Boys Soccer Team opened IML play two weeks ago with a pair of victories, the first on Thursday at St. Maries, 2 – 1, and then at home Saturday, Sept. 4 with a convincing 5 – 0 win over Orofino. Last Thursday, the Badgers defeated Priest River 4 – 1, raising their league record to 3 – 0 and 6 – 3 overall.
At St. Maries, the Lumberjacks were awarded a penalty kick in the 18th minute, which junior Ryan Kennelly converted to give them a 1 – 0 lead. While the Badgers dominated most of the action and controlled possession throughout, very few good scoring chances developed. Finally, with three minutes left, in the 77th minute, when things were looking bleak, junior Andre Zarate fired a close- range shot that St. Maries keeper Judd Sempel couldn’t control, and the resulting rebound was slammed in by senior midfielder Alex Mendez to tie the game at one. The ‘Jacks earned a corner kick after the ensuing kickoff, which goalkeeper Mat Evans collected and started a break the other way. Senior midfielder Aaron Moe delivered a through-pass to Zarate just past midfield, which resulted in a one-on-one with Sempel, and after Zarate juked to the his left, he scored the game-winner with just over a minute left, giving the Badgers an improbable come-from-behind win.
On Saturday versus Orofino, the Badgers dominated from the start, with Zarate scoring the first of his three goals in the 6th minute to give Bonners a 1 – 0 lead. Zarate struck again right before half, with an assist from Mendez, giving the Badgers a 2 – 0 halftime lead. Bonners added three second-half goals, with Zarate, Mendez, and senior forward Jesse Gondek converting to make the final 5 – 0. The Badger back four defenders, senior Trevor Hampton, juniors Ken Pew and Hayden Wakkinen, and sophomore Keaton Tremble played their best game collectively as a unit, limiting the Maniacs to few scoring opportunites.
Against Priest River, Bonners dominated from the opening kickoff, patiently working the ball around the field, waiting for good scoring opportunities. Alex Mendez assisted on the first two goals, the first in the 15th minute to senior midfielder Aaron Borne, and the second in the 20th minute on great crossing pass that sophomore midfielder Evan Moe converted to make it 2 – 0.
Senior forward Matt Piccolo scored in the 23rd minute, making the halftime score 3 – 0. All three first-half scores were the respective player’s first goals as Badgers. Mendez completed the BF scoring in the 59th minute, while Priest River scored on a long side-shot in the 66th minute.
The Badgers also faced the Post Falls JV in a home and away series, winning both games by 5 – 1 and 4 – 2 scores. Junior forward Daniel Palacios scored a goal in each game for his first scores of the season. On Friday, Sept. 10, the Badgers faced St. George’s of Spokane, coming up short in a 4 – 2 defeat, with Zarate and Piccolo finding the back of the net for Bonners Ferry.
Bonners Ferry travels to Priest River this Saturday, then to Troy next Monday to face Libby. The next home game is Tuesday, Sept. 21 as St. George’s pays a return visit.