Glacier Peak dropped

Published 11:17 pm Monday, May 2, 2011

SHORELINE — The Wesco 3A boys soccer title is going down to the final day of the regular season.

The Shorecrest Scots kept themselves in contention for the league championship by upending the Glacer Peak Grizzlies 3-0 Monday night at Shoreline Stadium.

Glacier Peak came into the game

undefeated and would have clinched the title with a victory. However, a strong team performance, backed by goals from Glenn Paden, Drew Beland and Callum Wijelath, kept Shorecrest alive.

“It’s a possibility,” Shorecrest coach Drew Thompson said about his team’s championship chances. “We could have enough points. Hopefully we get a little help.”

Monday’s result means the league title will be decided Wednesday. Shorecrest (13-1 league, 15-1 overall) now has 37 points, two more than Glacier Peak (12-1, 14-1). However, the Scots’ season is over, while the Grizzlies finish up against third-place Shorewood on Wednesday back at Shoreline Stadium. Therefore, Glacier Peak remains in control of its own destiny.

“We knew we had to win one of two this week,” said Grizzlies coach Shannon Murray, whose team beat Shorewood 3-2 in a shootout when the teams met April 6 at Glacier Peak. “It’s there on Wednesday, but we’re going to have to take our lessons from this game and apply them to Wednesday night, see how it goes from there.”

The Grizzlies and Scots could still end up tied for first should Glacier Peak beat Shorewood in a shootout. If that happens the title will be determined by a series of tiebreakers, which could eventually come down to a random draw.

There was no need for tiebreakers Monday as Shorecrest was well worth its victory, controlling play most of the game. Ian Adams, who was unavailable when Glacier Peak beat Shorecrest 3-1 on April 4, pulled the strings in midfield, while up front Paden used his size and strength to overpower the defense. With Shorecrest’s support players also contributing, there was little Glacier Peak could do to slow the Shorecrest attack.

“I thought we played great,” Thompson said. “I thought we had good ball movement, the kids were energized and I was proud of our boys.

“We wanted to play well, and quite frankly we haven’t played so well,” Thompson added. “We were looking for a game that would catapult us up that mountain, so to speak, to try and peak out.”

Sam Schober, who recorded the shutout in goal for Shorecrest, was rarely tested as most of Glacier Peak’s efforts came from long range and were wide of the target.

Meanwhile Glacier Peak, the defending 3A state champion, never found its stride. If not for some brave goalkeeping from Andrew Weakly, the score could have gotten out of hand.

“I thought the first 20 minutes they came out and were more prepared to play than we were, simple as that,” Murray said. “They came out, they played harder and better than we did. They were physically and mentally ready to play.

“I think it’s a good way for our guys to understand where we’re at in this point of the season,” Murray continued. “We’re at the point where it’s not about playing pretty soccer, it’s about winning games. So it’s good stuff for us.”

Shorecrest grabbed the initiative early in the contest, and the Scots grabbed the lead just eight minutes in. A clever back-heeled through ball by Adams sent Asa Redfield racing down the middle toward goal. Redfield found himself in a race for the ball with Weakly, who came charging off his line. Redfield got there just in time to tip the ball away, allowing Paden to shoot into an unguarded net from the edge of the penalty box to give Shorecrest a 1-0 lead.

The game settled down for the rest of the first half, with play evening out, and it remained 1-0. However, the second half was all Shorecrest. Weakly making a handful of good saves early to keep the Grizzlies in it, but it was just a matter of time before the Scots found the net again.

That breakthrough finally came in the 57th minute. Shorecrest had a corner kick on the right that the Scots played short. Though the play didn’t develop as designed, the ball eventually pinballed to the far post, where Belard tucked it under Weakly to make it 2-0.

Shorecrest then inserted the final dagger with nine minutes remaining. A good move up field gave Paden the chance to shield off his defender and shoot from close range. Weakly blocked Paden’s shot, but Wijelath was on hand to nod the rebound in from point blank and assure Shorecrest’s victory.

Now the Scots can only sit back and hope their crosstown rival can lend them a hand Wednesday.