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HAZE Temp: 48 °F Wind: CLM at 0 mph Thursday, November 21, 2002 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine W3 Magazine Jobs @ Mail Tribune Tempo A & E Oregon CarZone Wellness Connection Real Estate Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend October 9, 2002 South Medford�s Amber Stevens, left, fends off Crater�s Janelle Stoner, center, as Panthers midfielder Emily Smith looks on during Tuesday�s Southern Oregon Conference match. South went on to win, 7-2, at Fichtner-Mainwaring Park. Mail Tribune / Roy Musitelli South just keeps on going Panthers shrug off injury woes, move into first place outright in SOC girls soccer By TIM PYLE Mail Tribune Depth is always a luxury, but for the South Medford girls soccer team, it’s proving a savior. Plagued by injuries that would be devastating to most, the Panthers keep rolling along, thanks to a stacked, versatile roster. A 7-2 victory over Crater at Fichtner-Mainwaring Park on Tuesday boosted South to 4-0 in the Southern Oregon Conference and 8-1-1 overall. "We do have depth of talent on this team," said Buzz Thielemann, the Panthers’ third-year head coach. "And we’re pushing it right now. In fact, we have people playing outside halfback that have never played it before. But they’re doing a good job." South’s list of sitting wounded includes: senior goalkeeper Sarah Bryan (broken arm), senior forward Cassie Weber (ankle) and junior midfielder/goalkeeper Amanda Steiger (knee). As if that weren’t bad enough, senior fullback Liz Meyerding (ankle) and junior forward Amber Stevens (chest) were knocked out of Tuesday’s match. Nonetheless, the Panthers have first place in the SOC all to themselves following their win and North Medford’s 3-2 loss to Klamath Union on Tuesday. South’s win wasn’t as easy as the final score indicates, with two goals in the last 10 minutes turning what was a 1-1 match early on into a rout. Panthers sophomore right midfielder Emma McConnell started the scoring in the second minute, pouncing upon the rebound from sophomore forward Kelsey Corbin’s shot and beating Comets junior goalkeeper Lillian Hauser from close range. Crater (5-3-2, 1-3 SOC) responded 5 minutes later, as junior forward Sarah LaFontaine notched her 16th goal of the fall, sprung by a beautiful chip from junior forward Kasidy Reina. In the 16th minute, Corbin picked up her sixth assist of the season, leading Stevens down the left side for a left-foot finish to the far post. "You can see that those two have developed a nice relationship," Thielemann said of his starting forwards. Stevens struck again in the 21st, taking a pass from senior central midfielder Emily Smith on the left side and finding the net at the near post. The tally was Stevens’ 11th, which paces South. The score remained 3-1 through halftime, but the Panthers didn’t let that last for long in the second half. In the 50th, junior central fullback Courtney Quinowski drilled a dead-ball cross into the Comet penalty box, and Smith chested it past Hauser. "It was more of a stomach," said Smith, a transfer from St. Mary’s, where she was first-team all-District 6 in 2001. "I just kind of threw myself at it." Crater came back with Reina’s well-placed loft over South sophomore goalkeeper Bethany Stousland in the 53rd. LaFontaine set up the play with a run up the left sideline and switch over the Panther defense to Reina. LaFontaine, a first-team all-SOC selection last year, now has seven assists to go with her team-leading goal total, and Reina, a second-team pick last fall, is up to nine goals and six assists. Smith broke the Comets’ collective will with a 60th-minute solo act. She settled the ball in South’s defensive half, then sped straight down the field, juking a couple defenders before scoring at the near post from inside the box. "I just went for it," said Smith, who increased her goal total to six despite a lingering cold. "That just kind of took the wind out of us," said Terry Fretz, Crater’s fourth-year head coach. For good measure, the Panthers added junior fullback Danielle Singler’s long-distance drive off freshman goalkeeper Somer Reed’s fingers in the 70th and freshman forward Katrina Stevens’ bouncer, set up by a pass from sophomore left midfielder Kaylyn Knutson, one minute into injury time. Quinowski said the performance was a lift South needed, especially in the wake of losing Bryan and Weber in Saturday’s hard-fought, 2-1 victory at Klamath Union. "We needed that, just to boost our confidence again," said Quinowski, second-team all-SOC on the Panthers’ conference title-claiming team last year. "It was a good performance," added Thielemann, whose team posted a 24-10 advantage in shots. "This game I liked tactically, how they handled it. The game that showed their character was last week’s at Klamath Union. I’d never, in the 18 years I’ve coached, ever seen so much go wrong ... I was flat amazed." Fretz, whose program is still seeking its first-ever playoff berth, saw encouraging signs but knows there is still a ways to go to join South among the SOC’s elite. "We’re still at the growing stage, but we’re so much better than we have been," said Fretz, who played professionally in the Bahamas and Cayman Islands. "The girls are starting to believe in themselves." Reach reporter Tim Pyle at 776-4483 or e-mail [email protected] Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search M Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright 1997-2002 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy web master feedback A D V E R T I S E R S