DEMING — Mount Baker had done it. When the final whistle blew, the Mountaineers had clinched their first varsity win since Sept. 21, 2017.
The program had struggled to field a full team in recent years, playing largely junior varsity squads and C-teams to fill their schedule. When they did play against other varsity rosters, they were regularly losing by 10 goals. Now, after a 3-0 win over Nooksack Valley (NV), the Mountaineers feel like they’re headed in the right direction.
“We’ve had a couple of rough years,” Mount Baker coach Jason Jorgensen said. “Getting them to come out with that energy, and obviously it’s a 1A conference game, was phenomenal to see.”
Mount Baker got going quickly when sophomore forward Tyla Olson found the back of the net in the fourth minute to give the Mountaineers an early advantage. She continued to be one of the main aggressors giving NV defensive trouble throughout the game.
“I feel proud of myself; because I’ve worked for that,” Olson said.
The Pioneers controlled the tempo most of the game and had far more shots on goal than the Mountaineers. NV was unable to capitalize, primarily because a Mount Baker defender was always contesting the attempt.
Mount Baker sophomore Melanie Wilson had 13 saves in just her second game at goalkeeper. Wilson primarily played center back before this season but heeded the call when the team needed a net protector.
“It’s definitely different,” Wilson said of the position change. “It feels good to help my team out.”
Mountaineer sophomore Faith Wilson extended Mount Baker’s lead in the 39th minute when a shot rebounded back to her, and she managed to capitalize on the scramble of NV’s defense.
The final goal of the match came just two minutes before the game’s end, as Mount Baker junior Lillian Petersen capitalized on a shot to the right lower corner of the net. It was the icing on top of the Mountaineers’ win.
“Each practice [we’re] kind of building upon what worked well and what we need to get better at,” Jorgensen said. “I think they’re having a great start. We had some great new additions this year, which I think helped out quite a bit.”
NV keeper Alex Veening, the team’s lone senior, recorded six saves in the loss. The Pioneers have nine freshmen and six sophomores on their roster.
NV coach Ashley Homer is viewing the team’s youth as an opportunity to build something great over the next four years.
“It’s exciting to have a team that’s so young, to have so many freshmen starting and making an impact,” Homer said. “It just means more time to learn and more time to teach … It’s nice to be able to build the program how we want it.”
Mount Baker advanced to 1-0 in Northwest Conference play and 2-0 overall on the season. The Mountaineers’ previous win this season came against Anacortes’ C-team. They will look to keep to their winning ways on Sept. 29 when they host Meridian at 4:30 p.m.
NV dropped to 0-1 in conference games and 3-3-1 overall. The Pioneers travel to Lynden for a game versus the Lions at Bender Fields on Sept. 28. The game starts at 4:30 p.m.