After losing 10 seniors from their program last season, the Butte High boys soccer team started this season short-handed on the road against Helena High. The Bulldogs have a slim roster this season and only had 1 extra sub for JV and varsity games combined. Fortunately, swing rules allowed 7 JV players to give varsity players a breather in the 89 degree weather. Still, the Bulldogs were simply over powered by the Bengals’ size, strength, and speed and thus lost the match 0-9.
Butte High started a little sluggish and Helena High scored 3 goals very quickly. The Bulldogs settled in and even countered with numerous chances to score in the first half but still trailed by 4 goals at the half. The Bulldogs’ freshman goalkeeper Johan Thieszen along with his defense of Ben McAdams, Titus Salusso, James Pearson, and Aiden Lester prevented many other scoring opportunities. Offensively, Jack Luoma, Mack Williams, and Boyd Dewitt all had chances to score but never could find the net.
Coach Cody Carpenter stated, “Although it’s hard to lose a game by 9 goals, I saw a lot of positives–things to build on. We are very young and have 8 new starters this year, but I thought we played good as a team. We need to work on our fundamentals, communication, and conditioning as our new players adapt to the speed of the game.”
Next up, the Bulldogs host Helena Capital at Bulldog Memorial Stadium next Thursday, August 31.
