Thompson Falls-Plains play to draw with Libby

Being the new kids on the block, or in this case, the pitch, progress can be frustratingly slow.

But with quality kids and athletes it does come. 

So in the world of soccer, is a tie score progress?  Thompson Falls-Plains girls soccer coach Nick Lawyer perhaps summed it up best: 

“There are times when a draw feels like a loss,” he said. “And there are times when a tie feels like a win. The 3-3 tie against Libby (girls) and 1-1 (boys) certainly feel like wins for the Thompson Falls varsity soccer teams last week.”

Then came a pair of games versus Columbia Falls this past Saturday, the Class A runners up from last year, and a “storied” program with a strong history of excellence, Lawyer added. 

Saturday the two T Falls-Plains teams hosted Columbia Falls and lost both matches by 7-0 scores. 

In the match versus Libby, the girls spotted the Lady Loggers a 3-0 first half lead, then turned to Katherine Wrobleski, who put together the soccer equivalent of a hat trick, scoring three goals in the second half to earn the 3-3 deadlock. 

“Katherine Wrobleski continues to be our top scoring threat and as the end of that game she is currently tied for 8th in scoring for all Class A soccer in Montana”, Lawyer said of Wrobleski, and eighth grader who has five goals on the young season. 

The Blue Hawks had 12 shots on goal for the game, including six by Wrobleski and two by Ava Lawyer.  Libby’s girls had nine shots on goal. 

The boys also spotted Libby a first half lead, 1-0 but rallied to tie the match with a solo goal in the second half. It was their second 1-1 tie of the season, having the same outcome versus Lone Peak in their season opener. 

Then came home matches with powerful Columbia Falls, which won both boys and girls matches by identical 7-0 scores.  Boys coach Michael Scharfe was optimistic about his team’s progress. 

“Our boys played great (against Libby) and it was great to see some things that we were working on in practice”, Scharfe said. “Columbia Falls has a very strong team, and we will look to rebound against Bigfork this coming week. 

Both boys' and girls' teams have two home matches this coming week. Tonight (Sept 17), the Blue Hawks and Lady Hawks play Bigfork, then they play Whitefish on Saturday. 

    Thompson Falls soccer player Callie McGillis (3) tries to get past a Columbia Falls player during their match this past Saturday in Thompson Falls. (Photo by Erika Lawyer)