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With win, South girls co-champs By Kris Henry If there�s one thing the South Medford girls soccer team is good at, it�s sharing. The Panthers shared the ball and the scoring duties Tuesday in a 6-4 victory over Klamath Union at Fichtner-Mainwaring Park. In doing so, South Medford earned a share of the Southern Oregon Conference championship � a feat the Panthers have now accomplished for three straight seasons. They and North Medford finished the SOC season with 6-1 records. "We�re getting comfortable with that," said South senior Kathleen Narus. "It�d be nice to have it (outright), but we�ve all been playing against each other for years and years. I�m sure for both of us, it would be nice to have it on our own, but that�s OK." North Medford will take the league�s No. 1 seed into the state playoffs by virtue of a 2-0 victory over South on Oct. 10 at Varsity Field. As the SOC�s No. 2 seed, South Medford (8-6, 6-1 SOC) will play host to the Three Rivers League�s No. 2 team on Nov. 4. Klamath Union, which entered the final two SOC games undefeated, drops to the No. 3 seed at 5-2 in the SOC and Grants Pass is the No. 4 representative. "The Medford teams have always been really tough," said KU coach Gerrin DeGroot, whose team lost 3-2 to North on Saturday. "They have depth, which we�ve never had. (South) especially has got a deep bench and can go a long ways. They�re very explosive and gave our defense all it could handle." Colleen Salisbury helped South break out to an early lead on Klamath Union, winning a scramble for the ball and slipping a pass to Erin Reno in the fourth minute. Pelican goalkeeper Katrina Collins made a break for the crossing pass but Reno got a foot on the ball inches before Collins could corral it. Narus made it 2-0 two minutes later when she perfectly placed a 25-yard direct kick into the upper-left corner of the goal. Sara Schaaf put Klamath Union on the board in the 14th minute when she broke loose on the right side, slipped through two South defenders and lifted a shot over goalie Sarah Bryan at the near post. The Pelicans appeared to gather momentum off Schaaf�s run by following with three good opportunities off Sarah Davison�s head-over-heels throw-ins. South regained the momentum when Brittney Quinowski and Lyndsey Hawk came off the bench near the 25-minute mark. Quinowski immediately made an impact when she moved up from her defensive position and slipped a crossing pass to Reno, who scored her second close-range goal of the game to make it 3-1. "We thought it was essential to get up on them early," South coach Buzz Thielemann said. "They have girls like Sam Gilbert and Sara (Schaaf) who can score in bunches." Gilbert and Schaaf scored in the 32nd and 39th minutes, respectively, to even the score at 3-all. Gilbert�s goal came off a topsy-turvy throw-in by Davison that found its way to the mouth of the goal and was deflected across the line. "That throw-in is a weapon," said Thielemann. "I�m amazed at how well she does that." The Panthers roared back as Quinowski, who once again had pushed up, gained control of the ball and rocketed a shot through Collins� hands and inside the far post at the 40th minute. Klamath Union�s attack was thwarted for the most part in the second half as Heather Frigaard shadowed Gilbert�s every move, Hawk kept a tight rein on Schaaf and Narus waited patiently to snuff any threat should the first line break down. "We all knew our jobs and our defense just did such a good job in marking up Sara and Sam," said Narus. "Heather Frigaard and Lyndsey Hawk really played well." The Panthers upped their lead to 5-3 in the 18th minute of the second half on some beautiful touch-passing from Noelle Reed and Emily Perttu. Reed slipped a pass to Perttu at close range in the box, and Perttu instantly shifted the ball to a closing Reno for her third goal of the game. The Pelicans pulled back within one goal 35 minutes into the second half after South failed to clear the ball from its own zone and Brianne Hackett scored off a deftly-placed crossing pass by Davison. Proving they wouldn�t be denied, a third Panther defender got into the scoring column two minutes later as Perttu hit the crossbar, but Reed was there to head in the loose ball. Reed�s goal marked the 12th different Panther to score a goal this season. Of those 12, three players garnered their first goal of the season in the finale (Narus, Quinowski and Reed). "I think the biggest threat on this team is we�ve had 12 players score," said Thielemann. "That depth is a terrific advantage for us heading into the playoffs." Reach reporter Kris Henry at 776-4488, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2000 Mail Tribune, Inc.