Posted: Saturday, November 15, 2008 12:00 am
Philomath girls play for their first state championship today
By Raju Woodward
Gazette-Times Reporter
There will be no dramatic changes for the Philomath High girls soccer team. Nor will there be an inspiring pre-game speech made by PHS coach John Williams before his squad takes the field for today's 4A/3A/2A/1A state championship game at Wilsonville High School.
"If anything, I'm trying to get them to enjoy the moment," Williams said after Wednesday's practice at Corvallis High. "It's a special place. There are very few teams that get to this point, so we've been talking about just enjoying the fact that they are here and come ready to play our way."
The Warriors' way has worked well so far. They went undefeated in the regular season, tying only once. After a sluggish performance in their playoff opener against Catlin Gabel, the Warriors rebounded by shutting out Gladstone and Oregon Episcopal to earn a berth in today's championship game. Game time is 3:30 p.m.
It took awhile for the feat to sink in for many of the Warriors, who will be playing for a state title for the first time in program history. The buzz in the hallways at school on Wednesday helped, though. Classmates and staff were taking about the girls' accomplishment.
"(Tuesday) I couldn't really believe it," sophomore Andrea Whiteman said. "People for so long have been trying to do this, but we are the first people from Philomath to do this for soccer. I guess we have to keep going since we made it this far."
Standing in PHS's way today is another undefeated squad, Valley Catholic. The Valiants are the first seed from Special District 1 and are coming off a shootout victory over Cottage Grove in the semifinals on Tuesday. They play in the same district as Catlin Gabel and O.E.S. While the Warriors had the luxury of playing those two teams earlier in the season, that's not the case with Valley Catholic.
Beyond the Valiants' record, recent playoff history and their basic formation, Williams said he didn't know a lot about his squad's opponent.
That's why he said the Warriors will prepare for Saturday's match the same way it did for Gladstone and O.E.S., which basically comes down to playing the game the way they know how to play. So the biggest thing Williams wants his team to do is to come out calm and remain calm throughout the match.
With a state championship on the line, the girls admitted it will be difficult not be a little nervous or jittery at the beginning, but they have done a great job of keeping things light-hearted and fun all season, no matter the situation. Take the O.E.S. game for example.
Whiteman was guarding an O.E.S. player who pulled her shorts up her back as she turned with the ball, because she was getting frustrated by Whiteman's defense. It was embarrassing, but it also provided some much-needed humor during an intense match.
"Even when we are in super serious situations like these playoff games or shootouts, although we are serious, we are still having a good time," Whiteman said. "You can't take everything super seriously."
At the same time, the girls are super-focused on winning Saturday's game. Senior defender Renay Norman said the Warriors' goal from the first day of camp was not just to make it to the finals, but win it all.
So that's part of the reason the team was practicing at CHS this week. It hasn't played on turf much this season; the game against Gladstone two weeks ago was the first. Playing on turf is much different than on grass, so the team wanted to get used to the variations, which could be positive and negative.
"It's a little bit of a disadvantage," Norman said. "You really have to get your foot on the ball to stop it. It's kind of an advantage also, because we have really fast forwards. So if the ball is going with them they can run with it, instead of having to touch it."
Added Williams: "It plays a lot faster. (Tuesday), the balls got heavy and then the grass slowed them down even more. So you have to adjust how you pass and your touches have to be better. But we hope to use the speed of the turf to our advantage, but we'll have to see if it goes that way."
But other than that, Williams isn't too worried about today. He thinks his team is ready to come out strong and continue making history. He said what makes this year's squad stand out from his talented PHS squads of the past is its ability to pass to feet. But if you ask the players they will give you a variety of answers, everything from work ethic to chemistry.
"I think it's our heart this year," sophomore Joceline Howard said. "Our team has grown up a lot more, we only have one freshman. We have grown really well as a team. Most of us have played together for more than five years. So we have practiced really well this year and become very strong."
Admission to today's championship match at 3:30 p.m. is $8 for adults, $5 f or students.