Coming off a lackluster performance that resulted in a home-opener victory, the Idaho soccer team must now vanquish local rival Gonzaga to remain perfect at home.
The Vandals (1-1) won their first game of the season in Moscow last Sunday 1-0 against South Dakota. Coach Pete Showler called the effort one of the poorest in his time at Idaho, but fully expects his team to come out firing on all cylinders when they take on the Bulldogs (1-1) 4 p.m. Friday at Guy Wicks Field.
“They play a very direct, 4-3-3 from what we’ve seen and heard in the past. Very physical, very aggressive,” Showler said. “We’ve got to step on the pitch and know we can compete with that, and we’ve got to challenge everywhere, every minute of the game and that’s why the depth in our numbers is going to be helpful.”
Led by the school’s all-time leading scorer Chelsea Small, Showler said his team has played at times a traditional 4-3-3 offense, but his team needs to be more fluid than locking themselves into a certain position.
“The game’s so fluid and changes so often, that I don’t want to get caught up in a lineup or formation,” Showler said. “We just have to adjust and anticipate to where the ball is if we lose it and transition quickly.”
Playing alongside Small on the wing is senior Jill Flockhart, who said that one key factor in beating a bigger, more physical team like Gonzaga is utilizing the space and size of Guy Wicks Field, which allows more room for runs down the flank and crosses into the box.
“If we go up to GU, their field is definitely smaller, and I think we have to play that as an advantage,” Flockhart said. “We have to spread that ball wide to make the run. We are a fit team, and if we can spread that field as wide as we can and make them chase us it’s going to be a huge advantage.”
Anchoring the backline for the Vandals will be senior goalkeeper Liz Boyden, who in her two games since coming back from a season-ending broken leg last year has allowed only two goals in the team’s two games despite having a different back line for both, something she said is difficult to manage as a keeper.
“You have to have as a goalkeeper that trust in your back line, and you have to be able to communicate with them and when it’s constantly changing it’s hard to adapt especially when it’s young players getting thrown in there playing at this level,” Boyden said. “But that’s where I kind of have to step in and communicate more and take over.”
After falling 3-0 to the Bulldogs on the road last season, Showler said that a win like this especially in a season full of difficult non-conference and WAC matches is important for both the record and team’s motivation.
“Anytime you beat a local rival it’s fantastic, the girls have been hungry for some success in these types of games and we’ve got a lot of girls from Spokane so family ties are huge,” Showler said. “But all that aside we just have to step on the pitch, take care of business and we’ll be fine and dandy and lovely jubbly.”
The Vandals will play their second match of the weekend at 1 p.m. Sunday at Guy Wicks Field when they take on visiting North Dakota State University (0-2-1) who will also be on a short break after playing in Cheney, Wash., against Eastern Washington on Friday.
Madison McCord can be reached at [email protected]
Steven Devine | Argonaut
Senior Jill Flockhart, right, battles for ball control with a teammate during practice Wednesday afternoon. The team will play Gonzaga 4 p.m. Friday and North Dakota State 1p.m. Sunday at Guy Wicks Field.