Playoff bound: Pirates secure bid with win against Wildcats
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Polson boys’ soccer team was handed another tough loss to the Whitefish Bulldogs Sept. 27, despite a late scoring run. The Pirates struggled to keep up, falling behind when it came to executing their touches, ball control and passing, and dropped the game 6-3. With the win, Whitefish clinched the No. 1 seed in the Northern A Conference, with a No. 2 seed as Polson’s best hope.
Riley Lemm picked up all the goals for Polson, scoring at the 64, 71, and 76-minute marks.
“Lemm had a great second half, scoring a natural hat trick,” head coach Jess Kittle said. “All three of his goals came from well outside the 18-yard box and were over the head of the keeper.”
On Thursday, Polson exploded early on to take a halftime lead of 4-1 against Columbia Falls at home in a conference battle for the playoffs. With the win, Polson secured a spot in the playoffs and can’t finish worse than third.
James Larson got the Pirate offense rolling, scoring right out of the gate at the 6-minute mark. With excellent ball movement and passing, four other Pirates were able to score goals in the big win. Larson’s scoring total is now 11 goals and six assists, which is second-best in the state for scoring and a tie for first in assists.
“After having James Larson and Jon Heutmaker score seven of our eight goals against Columbia Falls last time we played, we did a great job of spreading the six goals around this game,” Kittle said.
Senior Caden von Wildenradt scored his first-ever goal on a penalty kick as he was filling in at sweeper for an injured Nick Howell.
Riley Lemm scored a pair of goals, bringing his total to 10 goals, good enough to tie him for fourth place in the state in scoring.
Jon Murphy scored during the 47-minute mark to give him a total of two goals this season along with five assists. Murphy’s five assists makes him third best in the state.
With the win, Polson is now 5-2-2 and 4-2-0 in conference.
The Pirates played Stillwater in Kalispell Tuesday, and will face Bigfork Thursday on the road. On Saturday they play Libby for their homecoming and senior day.
