LYNNWOOD — Wednesday night in Lynnwood was dark, rainy, windy and nasty. Any normal person would have been happy to be indoors.
Count the Meadowdale High School girls soccer team among the abnormal.
The Mavericks were more than happy to don blue jackets and kick around a wet ball in preparation for their Class 3A state semifinal game today against Seattle Prep (18-0-2) at Puyallup’s Sparks Stadium. After all, Meadowdale (18-3) is one of just four 3A teams who even get to play soccer this week.
Can’t make it to the game? Follow our live blog of the Meadowdale-Seattle Prep girls soccer state semifinal at the the Prep Zone blog.
Thanks to comeback wins over Bishop Blanchet (2-1 in a shootout) and last year’s state runner-up Bonney Lake (4-3) in the first two rounds of the state playoffs, the Mavs find themselves in position to accomplish something for the first time in their lifetimes — a state championship for Meadowdale soccer.
Meadowdale won the Class 4A crown in 1981 and a few weeks ago no one thought they had a chance to do it in 2011, but the girls always believed.
In fact before every game of the season each player has written “We Believe” on her left wrist prior to the game.
It was a motto that was modified from the “believe” rally cry from the 2010 team which was ousted from the state playoffs in the first round. That team had plenty of seniors and a different coach, but this version of the Mavs wouldn’t be here if last year’s disappointment hadn’t happened.
“These girls have some unfinished business,” first-year coach Wade Foley said.
They believed when they fell behind 2-0 to Bonney Lake. They believed again trailing Blanchet 1-0 at halftime of the quarterfinals.
“It seems like we’ve had some lucky breaks, but it’s all heart with us,” co-captain Roslyn Stapleton said.
The Bonney Lake game took extra belief, as the Mavs rallied to take the lead 3-2 then surrendered a late equalizer. With 20 seconds to play, defender Jasmine Parsley stepped up and scored her only goal of the season — a miracle shot from long range — to send the Mavs into a frenzy.
“It was priceless,” said Alisa Sagdahl, one of just three seniors on the team, “No words could describe how I felt.”
Speechless is definitely not normal for Sagdahl, who teammates call “Saggie” and is known for her ability to keep things light. She also leads the team in scoring.
“Sagdahl can ease any tension on the field,” Stapleton said.
Foley has learned a lot about this group since taking over at the beginning of the season. After early-season pitfalls against Everett and Glacier Peak, the Mavs toughened.
“These girls have a lot of confidence,” Foley said. “They know that the game is 80 minutes long and they are going to go for it. They are going to fight until the end.
“They believe in the power of the team and fighting every single second.”
Foley said the trio of Sagdahl, Stapleton, who he says everyone looks to for inspiration, and Alexa Thompson are the heart of the team.
Thompson, also a senior co-captain, anchors the defense. She said the team has a special bond. The girls are “closer than any of the four years that I’ve been here,” she said.
Some teams have cliques and divisions between the classes, but ever since a team-wide sleepover at Sophie Millet’s house in early October, the team has not only jelled, but hasn’t lost.
They stayed up all night. They dressed in costumes. The seniors made everyone else dance the Macarena at Dairy Queen. But most importantly, they became a family.
Arguably the most important player in a soccer family is the goalkeeper, and this team’s keeper has been critical to the Mav’s success.
Though just a freshman, Ashley Routh has been a rock in goal.
“She’s got a lot of experience through the Northwest Nationals program,” Foley said. “She’s one of the top goalkeepers in the state at her age group. To have her back there adds a level of confidence for our defense.”
Routh said her club experience prepared her for the level of play, but she has been pleasantly surprised by the roller-coaster nature of the Mavs’ season.
“I expected that it would be a lot of work and that we had a good team,” she said with a smile, “but I didn’t know it would be like this.”
The freshman goalie made two penalty-kick saves during the Blanchet game to seal the victory and send the Mavs on to play the Panthers, the defending state champions.
Entering the semifinals, the undefeated Panthers are favored to advance to play the winner of Eastside Catholic and Liberty for the state crown. Thompson, who has a friend who attends Seattle Prep, has heard some trash talking, but opted not to respond.
“It’s best for us to stay quiet and be the underdogs,” the center defender said.
It’s a position the Mavs are comfortable with and one that won’t affect one way or the other this simple fact: They believe.
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