Shadow Women Split Road Trip

Sunday, June 2, 2019

Facing a tough road trip with a match-up against the defending WPSL champion Seattle Sounders Women and a trek north of the border, the Shadow Women returned home with a split on the weekend from a pair of fantastic performances.

On Saturday the Sounders showed whey they have been the dominant force in the WPSL Northwest over the past three seasons. Moments after the Shadow challenged the Seattle keeper with a great shot, the hosts capitalized on a free kick in the ninth minute, taking it quickly and catching Spokane off guard. The dead ball was quickly slipped to a streaking Yuuka Kurosaki coming up the left side. She sent a low cross into the box that was first-timed past AJ Crooks (Alabama / Central Valley #) from 16 yards by Kaylee Dao.

A minute later they nearly made it two when a through ball to Melina Ayres created a great chance, but Crooks made a fantastic stop on the play.

Spokane nearly tied it up in the 19th minute when Megan Lindsay (Seattle Pacific / Gonzaga Prep) won the ball deep on the left and drove into the box, dropping it off to Claire Neder (Seattle Pacific / Mead #), but she was unable to get a clean look and pace on her strike as she spun to shoot.

In first half stoppage time the Sounders Women doubled the advantage when Olivia Van der Jagt drove parallel across the outside of the box from left to center before dishing it to Mireya Grey, who lifted her effort over Crooks to the far left post from about 16 yards.

The Shadow came out with a renewed effort in the second half and gave the hosts some trouble throughout the second half, pulling within one seven minutes into the period.

A ball played froward from Crooks started the play as it was won in the attacking third and slipped forward to Juliana deTar (Idaho). Her cross to the far post sailed high over Gaby Kennedy (CC Spokane / Lewis & Clark #), but Kennedy tracked it down, beat a defender at the endline and crossed it back into the penalty spot where deTar collected it off her thigh and volleyed a looping effort over the keeper.

Nine minutes later deTar nearly tied the match up when she slipped inside her defender and fired a shot that zipped past the right post.

The Sounders found a bit of fortune to add some insurance two minutes later when a low cross from Kristina O’Donnell from the left side into the six. A defender among the scrum of players inside the area was able to reach out to knock the ball out of the mix, but it rolled out to the top of the box, allowing Grey to step up and first-time it perfectly inside the right post in the 63rd minute.

A couple of last-minute chances from the Shadow made things interesting. In the 88th Lindsay fired a shot from the left side that the keeper bobbled and a minute later Chloe Gellhaus (Seattle Pacific / East Valley HS #) battled past two defenders on a run inside the box before the keeper was able to collect the ball to spoil the chance.

“We played really well and our staff is very happy with the effort the players put in. This is a great group to work with,” head coach Kevin Moon said after the match. “I am confident that with more time together we will become more and more competitive in this league.”

In Vancouver the following day the ladies rebounded for their second win to pull even with the Sounders at the top of the Northwest Conference at 2-1-0.

Recent club products played key roles in the scoring on the day, tallying twice in the first half as Molly Webster (Whitworth / CC Spokane) posted the shutout.

Kailyn LaBrosse (Concordia / Central Valley #) beat a defender on the right side and cut it back before sending the ball through the middle of the box, finding Megan Lindsay on the left side for the finish.

Marissa Bankey (Seattle Pacific / Central Valley #) brought it up the left wing and cut it back, delivering the ball across to future SPU teammate Neder, who flicked it in for some insurance.

The team now turns its sights on a busy home slate for June. as they play the next three at home before their final road trip. They host 1-0-1 ISC Gunners on SYSA Day June 16 at Spokane Falls CC Stadium. They then host the Oregon duo of Eugene Timbers FC Azul and Westside Timbers on June 22 and 23. All three matches kick off at 2:00.

# – denotes club alumni

Community Support: Courtesy of Northern Capital Management, the leading sponsor for the Women’s First Team, all of the regular season WPSL Spokane Shadow matches will be free for attending fans. NCM is the first of many new area businesses and organizations supporting the women’s team this year. They are joined by: MultiCare Rockwood Integrated Sports Medicine, Clearwater Summit Group, Lyte Balance, BECU and Spokane Sports Commission.

Match Summaries

Friday – Spokane Shadow 1-3 Seattle Sounders Women
SEA: Kaylee Dao (Yuuka Kurosaki) 9
SEA: MIreya Grey (Olivia Van der Jagt) 45
SPO: Juliana deTar (Gaby Kennedy) 52
SEA: Mireya Grey 63
Lineups
Spokane: AJ Crooks, Megan Lindsay, Claire Neder, Taylor Brust, Kasey Ames, Taryn Baxter, Payton Stiles, Grace Hancock, Bridget Rieken, Eme McLaughlin, Juliana deTar – Substitutes: Emmy Moore, Paige Malm, Gaby Kennedy, Marissa Bankey, Chloe Gellhaus, Kailyn LaBrosse, Courteney Shovlin, Molly Webster
Seattle: Madeline Nielsen, Kirsten Pavloski, Stephanie Spiekerman, Kimberly Hazlett, Alicia Barker, Yuuka Kurosaki, Kaylee Dao, Sophie Hirst, Morgan Weaver, Melina Ayres, Kristina O’Donnell – Substitutes: Jordan Thompson, Kaylene Pang, Alyssa Conarthon, Olivia Van der Jagt, Summer Yates, Mireya Grey, India Jencks, Katie King

Saturday – Spokane Shadow 2-0 Vancouver TSS Rovers
SPO: Megan Lindsay (Kailyn LaBrosse)
SPO: Claire Neder (Marissa Bankey)
Shutout: Molly Webster
Lineups
Spokane: Molly Webster, Megan Lindsay, Courteney Shovlin, Bridget Rieken, Eme McLaughlin, Kasey Ames, Juliana deTar, Gaby Kennedy, Taylor Brust, Claire Neder, Grace Hancock – Substitutes: Taryn Baxter, Emmy Moore, Paige Malm, Marissa Bankey, Chloe Gellhaus, Kailyn LaBrosse, Payton Stiles, AJ Crooks
Vancouver: Kylee Seto, Christina Dickson, Pauline McCordic, Katie Bishop, Sophia Stevens, Kathleen Aitchison, Emma Pringle, Kaely Biring, Reese Moffat, Katelyn Erhardsen, Allyson Dickson – Substitutes: Rachel Bedek, Brittany Costa, Ellie Reid, Jenna-lee Baxter, Maya Alibudbud, Amanda Scott

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