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Crimson Bears soccer boys nip Wolverines again
- Klas Stolpe
- 2 hours ago
- 5 min read
JDHS wins 1-0 for the second consecutive day over South Anchorage
By Klas Stolpe
Juneau Independent
For the second match in as many days the Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé Crimson Bears boys soccer team did more than the 1-0 score to defeat visiting South Anchorage on Saturday at Adair-Kennedy Memorial Park. And they did it with 17 players earning quality minutes.
“A lot of positive teamwork out on the field,” senior Elliot Welch said. “The bench was getting into it, the team on the field was getting into it. It brought the energy up for the whole team. And talking a lot on defense helped.”
The Crimson Bears are going "hockey subbing," a style Welch, a four-year JDHS hockey player, and his teammates are perfecting. Welch, sophomore Bryce Haygood and junior Sam Mazon played 60 minutes each, senior Emmett Mesdag and sophomore Troy Edgar 55.
It fit perfectly into the return of junior Maddox Carroll from injury. In limited minutes he was able to provide the single goal Friday on a free kick in the first half and the single goal Saturday off an assist by sophomore Bryce Haygood.
“Just putting in the effort when I am in,” Carroll said. “I didn’t have a lot of minutes this weekend so it was just making the most out of them. I was telling myself I was going to score and, yeah, it came.”
Carroll played 45 minutes Saturday and 40 on Friday among 23 players taking a turn on the pitch.
“Definitely not 100 percent yet, but able to play limited minutes,” Carroll said. “And I am just glad to be back with the team, than out for a long time. I think we have a very dynamic team. We have a deep bench, a lot of players able to sub and willing to play in different positions. So that is definitely helping us on the field.”
Senior defender Jesper Bennetsen played 70 minutes, down 10 from the previous day. He is the solidifying force in the back and recorded nine steals.
“I find that I had to put in an extra 10 percent effort,” senior Jesper Bennetsen said. “Every single time the ball is in the air, I always think, if it is me or the player, they are going to miss. So I always double-check a track back, I am actively moving while the ball is in the air and tucking in behind them. It is always just about effort. I think the more effort you put in, the better the results you get.”
For Bennetsen and other defenders, having Carroll back is a blessing. It lessens the scoring burden on the strikers and forwards, allowing them to be more relaxed and creative.
“He is a naturalist,” Bennetsen said. “He puts in the work. He gets it done. And he scores.”
Senior Kaiden Odenheimer played 50 minutes, senior Noah Ault and freshmen Imanol Vera and Karter Barzee 45, junior Ibrahima Diouf and freshmen Andrew Koverdan and Elijah Edgar 40, juniors Erik Thompson and Ethan Van Kirk 35, and freshman Max Montalbo 20.
Thompson, Diouf and Barzee had three steals, junior Sam Mazon, Vera and Koverdan two steals each, E. Edgar, Welch, Odenheimer and Ault one steal each.
Sam Mazon earned the team’s Lunch Box recognition for his effort across the entire pitch while playing 60 minutes. He had two steals and one corner kick, and sophomore keeper Callen Walker earned his second straight clean slate over 80 minutes with five saves.
South junior keeper Rafe Provencio played 80 minutes and came up big covering a Carroll penalty kick.
JDHS had five corner kicks. Carroll had two, Montalbo, Mazon and Haygood one each.
Haygood led with four shots (three on goal), Carroll and Mazon three apiece (two on goal), Montalbo two shots on goal, Koverdan, Welch and Van Kirk one shot each.
“It is kind of what I expected from the beginning of the year,” JDHS coach Gary Lehnhart said. “We had lost our way. We didn’t really need the wins. They did help our RPI but, to me, the more critical piece was we finally got to implement our system. We played 17 guys. That is pretty much unheard of in soccer. And to keep going like that and not have a drop off in play, I am really pleased with that...It is called hockey subbing. Because in hockey you do it because of the fatigue, you just can’t skate that many minutes. But if you really think about it you can do the same thing in soccer, if the players will buy in. And if they will run, and not play like they are going to play for 80 minutes, but play like they are going to play for 40 minutes, I think it can make a difference. And it did. I really felt like it did this weekend. We have so many guys that are similar in the way that they play. Our bench, everybody is into it, they are excited. It worked. We are feeling good going in (to state).”
The Alaska School Activities Association soccer state championships are May 28-30 at Matanuska-Susitna Valley high schools Colony, Palmer and Wasilla.
• Contact Klas Stolpe at sports@juneauindependent.com
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