Mount Baker soccer still alive after district playoff loss

Mount Baker lost to Sultan 4-1 in the first round of the 1A Northwest District Girls’ Soccer Tournament on Monday, Oct. 26, at Sultan High School.

Sultan’s penalty kick in the 9th minute of play gave them an early lead that held. It was Sultan’s keeper who prevented the Mountaineers from scoring with a dozen shots on goal. Similarly, Emily Brandland made 22 saves for Mount Baker while fending off an aggressive offense, Mount Baker coach Jason Jorgensen said in a phone interview.

“Emily Brandland played a fantastic game in goal,” he said. “She got shots on shots being peppered in the goal and was all over the place making fantastic saves.”

With two aggressive players in the nets, the game was a battle from both teams on the field. Aside from Sultan’s two penalty kicks, the Mountaineers controlled most of the offensive play, keeping the ball on Sultan’s half for the majority of the game, Jorgensen said.

“We kept battling until the end, that goal we scored off the corner has been something this team worked on all season,” he said. “We won the individual battles.”

The game is not over for the Mountaineers this season, Mount Baker will play at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 31, at Whatcom Community College against the loser of the Wednesday game at Kings High School.

This story was originally published October 26, 2015 at 10:56 PM with the headline "Mount Baker soccer still alive after district playoff loss."