The W.F. West girls soccer team surged to second place in the 2A EvCo on Tuesday, downing Aberdeen 1-0.
“Tonight was probably about as comprehensive of a 1-0 win as you’re going to get,” WFW coach Kevin Schultz said.
The Bearcats (6-6, 5-3 2A EvCo) outshot the Bobcats 11-5, and had 15 corner kicks on the night.
“We did a good job of attacking them, especially in transition,” Schultz said. “We were winning the ball and going quickly into our attack.”
But the only stat that really matters is the goals column, and Emily Mallonee gave W.F. West the goal it needed in the 12th minute, taking a long ball from Violet Ratkie over the top and slotting it past the keeper.
At the back, the Bearcats posted their fifth shutout in the past six matches, thanks to another solid effort on the defensive line and another split effort from goalkeepers Staysha Fluetsch and Charlee Nelson. Fluetsch made three saves in the first half to earn the win between the sticks, and Nelson had two in the second to preserve the shutout.
“We feel like we have two solid keepers, and we have that competition, which we feel like brings out the best of them,” Schultz said.
The evening was also a positive for the Bearcats for a few newer faces to the lineup. Jaelynn Fuentes marked her return from a knee injury with her first start back at midfield. Up top, freshman Ashlen Gruginski spent much of the night terrorizing the Bobcat back line, racking up six shots.
“I think once she sees the ball go in the net a couple of times, that dam is going to break and it’s going to be a lot of positives,” Schultz said.
W.F. West is set to take on Tumwater — the only team above it in the league standings — Thursday at home.
