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North nabs top spot to state photo by Jim Craven Surprising Tornado girls beat Cavers, share crown By Greg Stiles The North Medford girls soccer team came of age three weeks ago when it knocked off preseason Southern Oregon Conference favorite South Medford. The Black Tornado validated its coach�s lofty expectations Tuesday afternoon when it nailed down the SOC�s No. 1 state playoff berth with a 2-0 win over visiting Grants Pass. "This is a really big deal," said senior midfielder Tiffany Blodgett. "We�re such a young team, and didn�t get much notice (going into the season). After we lost to Roseburg, nobody thought we�d do anything. But now we�re going to the playoffs." The Tornado shared first place with South Medford with 6-1 records. But North�s 2-0 win over the Panthers gave it the top spot. "When we defeated South, it set the stage and let us know we could do it," Blodgett said. "The South game was for pride, it was more than a soccer game." With its latest win, North earned a Nov. 4 playoff date with the Valley League�s No. 4 finisher. The Tornado finished SOC play 6-1 and 6-4-3 overall. Grants Pass, which finished fourth in the SOC, dropped to 4-3 and 8-4-2 overall. The Cavers play host to the Pacific-9�s No. 4 team next Tuesday. With six freshmen on the roster, North had room to surprise people this season. "These kids have played a lot of competitive soccer and they�re used to the pressure," Darcy said. "They�ve blossomed, and it�s exciting to know I�m going to have them three more years." Once again freshmen supplied North�s scoring punch. Kadi Driver staked the Tornado to a 1-0 advantage, taking a pass from Julie Elbon before whirling around and firing into the net. "I saw Julie�s pass go past Whit (Whitney Major) and McKenzie (Weiler)," Driver said. "I got it and just spun around. The defender was on my left, so it was just natural to turn and shoot." Grants Pass� all-conference goalkeeper Alicia Pilcher had a busy afternoon, snagging, deflecting and punching North shots. But with 11 minutes left in the half, Pilcher fumbled the ball in front of her goal and Kelly Vilarino made the Cavers pay. "I knew it was going to bounce and slip through her fingers," said Vilarino. "It was one of those moments that I just knew and the other defender didn�t know what was going on." Two goals were enough and it might have been more, but North suffered two key injuries. Sandwiched between the two scores, Weiler, a senior midfielder, injured her right ankle and spent the rest of the contest on the bench with an ice pack. "McKenzie is our transition person," Blodgett said. "Our inside mids � me and Lisa Munyon � are more defensive. Karen Thiebes did awesome in McKenzie�s place, but we definitely got pushed around and had to improvise." Early in the second half, sophomore defender Munyon injured her right knee and joined Weiler on the bench. Both are expected back for the playoffs. Grants Pass couldn�t capitalize on Weiler�s and Munyon�s absence. "After we get scored on, we usually pick up the intensity," Pilcher said. "That didn�t happen today. We couldn�t get into our offense and wound up playing a defensive game." Nonetheless, the Grants Pass is going to the state playoffs in back-to-back years for the first time. "We�re pretty young, too," said Pilcher. "So I�m excited we�re going back to the playoffs." Reach reporter Greg Stiles at 776-4483, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2000 Mail Tribune, Inc.