EVERETT — When Archbishop Thomas Murphy senior Kat Taylor scored three minutes into last week’s first-round Class 2A state game against Winlock/Toledo, it was clear the Wildcats were at the top of their game.
And at the end of the night, Archbishop Murphy defeated the Indians 5-1 Nov. 10 at Everett Memorial Stadium.
Junior Ashley Reinig followed Taylor with a second goal near the end of the second half. Then Taylor, freshman Emma Nelson and sophomore Andrea Gaitan closed out the game with three goals in the second half. Taylor and Reinig both had two assists and forward Gaitan had one assist.
Winlock/Toledo scored its only goal in the second half.
The Wildcats, who were extremely jovial after their victory, said passing accuracy was a major component to securing the win.
“I was really pleased with the passing,” said coach Pat Jack. “It was so much better than the last time we did it (against Sultan). Not only was that good, but they moved the ball across the field nicely.”
Taylor noted that the players made eye contact and sent the ball clearly to the feet of their teammates.
“We used our wings. In the first half Michelle Linscott was playing the wing. She got a lot of crosses,” said Taylor. “And Reinig, her shots were on. She was distributing the ball really well. Then Andrea (Gaitan) and I were working up at the front and we really clicked that game.”
Jack said Winlock/Toledo didn’t distribute its players into one-on-one formation to block passes and steal balls.
“The other team bunched so that gave us the advantage,” said Jack. “We got them tired. That’s great we were moving back and forth and tiring them out. The other team had a lot of get up and go but they didn’t have much ball handling abilities.”
Both Taylor and Jack said that a second reason that the team was able to dominate the game was their familiarity with the turf. The Everett Memorial Stadium has a slick, bouncy turf. The artificial grass is short and slick.
Players not used to the surface are at a disadvantage.
“A lot of them had their cleats on,” Taylor said of the opposition. “I don’t think they were expecting artificial turf.”
The Wildcats already had two opportunities to get used to the artificial turf at the stadium, which is much different than playing in the naturally grassy (and sometimes muddy) field behind Archbishop Murphy High School. The Wildcats played Sultan in a playoff game and then practiced the day before the quarterfinal matchup on the turf.
According to Taylor, practice makes a difference because “the ball bounces high. It’s really fast paced. You have to make sure the ball gets there. Everything moves a lot faster than on the artificial turf and you have to get your touches down. You have to be perfect.”
Jack said that even a good team gets frustrated on unfamiliar turf.
“I think we played a good team,” she said. “Maybe they don’t have a lot of experience or maybe it was the turf that was bothering them. This is a very bouncy surface so you have to work at keeping the ball settled.”
Winlock/Toledo may have been overmatched, but it was still aggressive, said Jack. That fired up the Wildcats and resulted in some great plays and also an opportunity to give some freshmen some time on the field.
“Kat had some great moments,” Jack said. “She always has good moves. She did some lovely turnarounds during this game.”
For Reinig, who scored the winning goal against Sultan on her birthday Nov. 8, the highlight of the evening was a fake-out that led to the final goal.
“The best play for me tonight was when Brenna (Rice) crossed it and Gaitan headed it in,” Reinig said. “I faked them out and Gaitan sent it in. That wasn’t my goal it was Gaitan’s. It was a great play.”
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