Lady Pirates defeat Shelley in state 3A condsolation game
By Ray Rodriguez
Sunday, October 21, 2007 1:03 AM PDT
Buhl - No way a freshman goalkeeper is supposed to carry a team on their back.
Add on the pressure of state, the cold and the wind and they usually shy away from capturing the moment.
Not Brandy Blackburn.
Blackburn made two penalty kick saves and teammates Cassie Gross, Mayra Flores and Crystal Gutierrez netted penalty kick goals to lead the Pirates to the 3-1 win over Shelley in consolation round action of the 3A state girls soccer playoffs Saturday in Buhl.
“I have to do whatever I can for the team. I got to be there for them,” Blackburn, who made 11 saves said.
The scenario was all to familiar for Payette, which defeated Snake River by the identical score in the opening round of state action.
“Resilience, patience and composure. For freshmen or mostly freshman, they showed a lot of heart,” Payette head coach Gordon Peterson said. “They found out a lot about themselves. Two games like this, just how much it takes and so they learned a lot. It was good experience and that’s what we’re taking from it. It’s so impressive to be as young as we are and to achieve what we have.”
With 11 freshman players on the roster, they have earned themselves a new name — The cardiac kids.
“They are such a young team that they didn’t know what to expect,” Payette senior Bryn Elliott said. “You have to encourage them on the field and off the field. I told them to expect everything. It’s not like our league games. It’s tough, so we tell them to always play tough and never back down.”
But all the heroics would have been null and void if it were not for a late goal by another freshman, Jordan Rodriguez.
Down 2-1 in the waning moments of the second half and the wind in their faces, Rodriguez grabbed a loose ball and roofed a shot over the outstretched arms of Shelley goalkeeper Kristy Gulbransen to tie the score.
“I was thinking the pressure is all on me to score this goal,” Rodriguez said. “You’re thinking about everything at that point. Shooting it high or on the ground, I just wanted to get a good shot. You’re thinking try to get it in and I was able to do it.”
The score remained the same through the rest of the second half and two sudden death overtime periods, before the game went to penalty kicks.
Gutierrez struck first blood for Payette and Blackburn made a save on a Russet attempt. Flores gave Payette a 2-0 lead with a penalty kick goal, but Shelley answered right back with a score by Chantelle Dabb. Cassie Gross gave Payette a 3-1 lead and on Shelley’s next kick, Blackburn lunged to her left and made a diving stop to secure the win.
Payette had the wind at their backs in the opening stanza and Gross tallied a goal to give her squad a 1-0 halftime lead.
Early in the second half, the Russets controlled the pace of the game and, aided with the wind at their backs, they tied the score and took the 2-1 lead.
