Bingham beats Riverton in boundary battle

RIVERTON — Players from Bingham and Riverton made it apparent early and often that the two teams simply don't like each other very much. The tackles were a little harder, the shoulder charges were delivered with a little more force and the overall feistiness was clear.

But after all the extra incentives and emotions of the budding rivalry between boundary schools and the best two soccer teams in Region 3, it was the same story as it has always been. Bingham came out on top, 2-1.

"This is turning into a great rivalry," said Bingham coach Kevin VanderVeur. "The two schools are clearly the class of the region, and it is a competitive game when we step out there. It is the old school vs. the new school."

Bingham has established itself as the premier soccer team in Region 3. Over the past two seasons, the Miners have yet to lose a region contest. Riverton has lost four games over the span— with all four loses coming at the hands of the Miners.

"We just like to let them know that we are still on top," said Bingham midfielder Tasha Aiono. "We are Bingham and we expect to win every game, including when we play Riverton."

The Miners won as a team, but they can thank two players in particular for the continuation of their unbeaten streak over Riverton. LaChere Anglin scored both goals for the offense, and sweeper Teresa Holt kept the defense organized and did a great job of taking control of the game at the back.

Anglin's first strike came in the 13th minute. Hailey McKee took a ball on the right wing and hit it through the middle to Anglin who used her speed to get behind the defense. She beat the onrushing keeper with a calm poke to the lower-right corner. She scored her second goal just three minutes later when she followed up a shot taken by McKee that Riverton goalie Terri Huntington did a fantastic job deflecting but just could not hold on.

"LaChere is brilliant out there," said VanderVeur. "She does a great job putting the ball in the net. I am not sure where our offense would come from without her."

While Anglin led the offense, Holt did the job on defense. Riverton pressed forward to try to catch up, and except for one brief lapse— the Silverwolves scored in the 24th minute when Shelby Ostler knocked in a ball that was bouncing around the middle after a flip throw-in from Rachel Johnson— Holt was up to the task.

"I don't think any coach has a bigger luxury than I do in having Teresa back there," added VanderVeur. "She is the strongest, fastest, even meanest defender I have seen. She just goes at it so hard."