High school soccer: Woods Cross sneaks out with win over Bountiful

BOUNTIFUL — Woods Cross taught onlookers an important lesson Thursday afternoon: dominating the ball and taking more shots aren't prerequisites to winning a soccer game.

A late goal by Aarika Andersen helped the Wildcats steal a 1-0 win over Bountiful in a game both coaches admit should have been won by the Braves. And yet, there they were — the Wildcat bench rushing the field in jubilation after defeating its main rival on the road.

"To come out of a game where we had maybe 35 percent of the ball and win it one to nil is great," Woods Cross coach David Newman said. "I thought Bountiful played very well and was probably the better side, really. We sneaked it, so I guess you take what you can get sometimes and go home happy."

In many ways, the game didn't live up to the preceding hype — that of two high-scoring rivals in a game with state tournament implications. The teams looked tentative from the start, and neither Bountiful nor Woods Cross created many scoring opportunities.

"The best I can come up with is that we had rivalry jitters," Bountiful coach Lou Plank said. "I think our kids were focused more on the hype of the rivalry than playing the actual match, and it showed. It's the worst soccer we've played this year. I don't know why we'd want to save it for this game."

Bountiful and Woods Cross entered the game in a three-way tie with Olympus for second place in Region 6. And while it's still early in the season, the winner would have a leg up come postseason play.

Advantage, it seems, goes to Woods Cross.

"This game was huge," Newman said. "I told the girls on Monday that this was a big week, and to beat Olympus at home then Bountiful here on the road was as good as we could have hoped for. It gives us a lot of confidence moving forward."

Woods Cross took advantage of sloppy defending by the Braves to get on the board in the 66th minute. After a weak clear from the Bountiful defense, Andersen stepped in front of her defender and redirected a cross from teammate Jen Anderson into the back of the net.

"It happened really fast," Andersen said. "Jen made a run down the wing and sent in a beautiful cross, and I just thought, 'I have to get to it.' Luckily, I was able to deflect it into the goal."

The Braves held the ball for much of the game, but the passes they continually strung together often led nowhere. Bountiful was listless on the ball, and a sense of urgency didn't materialize until Woods Cross took the lead.

"They had a lot of the possession, but I don't really remember our goalkeeper making one big save," Newman said. "So that means as a team we defended pretty well and worked hard for each other and dug it out, and that's really pleasing. If you can play below you're best and still pull a win out then there's a lot of good in that."

e-mail: mpayne@desnews.com