JDHS soccer teams play beautiful game

Soccer is called “The Beautiful Game” and the Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé Crimson Bears girls and boys soccer teams played Friday on the Adair Kennedy pitch against visiting Eagle River with the simplicity, tradition, culture, skill and finesse that connects the sport worldwide.

The JDHS girls defeated the Wolves 3-0 and the boys won 9-1 despite rain building from the opening girls kickoff from the center mark to a downpour through the final boys whistle.

The consolidation of now-defunct Thunder Mountain High School into JDHS definitely showed nothing but teamwork throughout both contests.

The Crimson Bears girls first Hard Hat Award, given to the player that exhibits solid play throughout the match, went to former Falcons player and now new JDHS junior Piper Blackgoat-Diehl.

“I feel really good,” Blackgoat-Diehl said. “The transition between schools has been interesting, but I think it has benefited a lot of us and I’m really excited to see how the season goes because I’m really looking forward to it. I’m really happy with my coaches, my team, I’m really excited with what is coming next…I guess my mindset is I am here to play, I’m here to support my team, I’m here to give it my all and leave it on the field and try my best.”

The JDHS boys first goal of the season came just minutes into play as junior Fixx Siner, who scored last season for TMHS, earned the team’s Belt Goal Award — given to a player who scores in a battle in a scrum at the opponents’ goal.

Siner said his goal was overwhelming.

“This means a lot,” Siner said emotionally. “It’s awesome. The JD team has been so welcoming this year and it just means a lot to have my first goal this season.”

The JDHS girls first goal came in the first half when senior forward Milina Mazon hit a corner kick into the Eagle River box and it hit a few Wolves, including the keeper, before setting in front of Crimson Bears freshman midfielder Zoe Tagsip and she touched it in.

“This is my first year, as a freshman, and I got the first goal of the season,” Tagsip said. “It was really fun and I was really happy after. It was really exciting and I heard everybody screaming and being happy…Milina took the corner, it bounced off all their defenders and I just went in and kicked it after it bounced off one of them. I saw it, like, escape one of the defenders feet and I just shot it with my left, and I’m not even a left foot.”

Mazon would score the next goal in the first half off a free kick by senior Natalie Travis. Travis’ ball came from distance and Mazon let it come out from underneath her and chested it past the keeper for 2-0.

The JDHS girls third goal came in the second half as junior forward Peyton Wheeler took an assist from freshman Marigold Lindoff who intercepted an Eagle River clear, and touched the ball to Wheeler who pounded a strike in from 10 yards out for the 3-0 final.

“I win’s a win,” JDHS girls coach Matt Dusenberry said. “I thought we played better in friendly on Tuesday than we did tonight.”

The JDHS team lost a scrimmage contest against a local women’s team on Tuesday.

“It also hasn’t rained in a while,” Dusenberry said. “So we kind of seem to not know how to play in the rain. We kind of made some mistakes with how the ball kind of reacts on the turf but jitters and first game and new players…you can’t complain.”

The JDHS boys had no complaints as they clearly were the better side on the night.

After Siner’s first goal the tally, and the Belt Goal Award, just kept rising.

Senior Ryan Thibodeau scored in the box on a throw in by junior Emmett Mesdag to earn the Belt Award from Siner for 2-0, senior Ahmir Parker scored in the box to take the Belt Award from Mesdag for 3-0, junior Kevin Flores-Lopez blasted a rebound in off a Parker shot for 4-0, junior Noah Ault headed in a ball for 5-0, freshman Bryce Haygood blasted in a strike for 6-0, Siner scored again from 25 yards out for 7-0 and Thibodeau scored his second goal with a strike from 30 yards for 8-0 and the half ended.

“Clearly their program is in a developing stage,” JDHS coach Gary Lehnhart said of Eagle River. “I was pleased in the way we came out and we played hard and fast and we were especially good on set pieces, which are all the things we want to be. And then I thought our guys did a good job of just playing the right way and hard. You have to give Eagle River credit too, they kept playing hard, they didn’t give up.

The beautiful game really came to light in the second half as JDHS possessed the ball nearly the entirety of the half, yet scored just once on a through ball designed for senior Nathaniel Brennell to strike in.

The perfect parts of the match were seen in this second half as the Crimson Bears boys displayed unselfish ball control and worked more on their precision passes and reverses than shots on goal.

“They were passing the ball, sharing it and I’m happing with the way it is moving around,” Lehnhart said during the display.

Eagles River sophomore Luke Beck got a late goal as he struck from between two defenders on a racing dribble towards the Crimson Bears net to close the deficit to 9-1.

The JDHS girls play Eagle River Saturday at 1:15 followed by the Crimson Bears boys playing the Wolves at 3 p.m. Both matches are on the Adair Kennedy Pitch.

• Contact Klas Stolpe at klas.stolpe@juneauempire.com.