Before Thursday, Brady Riley had never played a Section 8-3A Tournament game in front of a home crowd. In fact, no Bemidji High 歪歪漫画 boys soccer player had since 2020.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been a while since we had one of these here,鈥� Riley said with an ear-to-ear smile.
ADVERTISEMENT
In front of their biggest home crowd this season at Chet Anderson Stadium, the third-seeded Lumberjacks had plenty to celebrate in a 3-0 win over No. 6 Brainerd in Thursday鈥檚 8-3A quarterfinal. The triumph booked a rematch with No. 2 Sartell on Tuesday, Oct. 17, for a chance to play for a section championship. But first, the Jacks were relishing the accomplishment of a season-long vision.
鈥淭he goal at the beginning of the season was to get a top seed and get a home playoff game,鈥� Bemidji head coach Rick Toward said. 鈥淲e were one goal away from getting two of them. 鈥� Getting kids to believe in what they鈥檙e capable of is the philosophy of coaching as much as it鈥檚 about the X鈥檚 and O鈥檚.鈥�
The belief Toward spoke of was evident in Riley鈥檚 performance. He put the Jacks in front in the eighth minute after receiving a pass from junior Reed Johnson on a long set-piece kick lined into the 18-yard box. Riley played the ball with an impressive first touch, made a move to his right on a defender and beat Brainerd keeper Kalvin Stengrim with a strong strike in the bottom left corner of the goal.
鈥淲asn鈥檛 that beautiful?鈥� said Toward of Riley鈥檚 first goal. 鈥淗e鈥檚 really stepped up this season, toward the end of the season. What can I say? He鈥檚 really made a difference on the field, and it鈥檚 noticeable when he鈥檚 not out there.鈥�
Four minutes later, Isaac Stone doubled Bemidji鈥檚 lead with his 23rd goal of the season. Stone made the Warriors pay for a costly turnover by taking on two defenders for a 50/50 ball. He then gained the ball in stride toward the Brainerd goal, shook a charging Stengrim and scored.
鈥淲henever you have the ball, all you have to do is look up, and Isaac is open,鈥� Riley said. 鈥淵ou know he wants the ball, and he鈥檚 going to work super hard to get it. It鈥檚 fun playing with him because he gets you a lot of assists.鈥�
Riley scored again in the 75th minute to silence any Brainerd threat of a comeback. He was impressed with how well the Lumberjacks converted their set-piece opportunities.
ADVERTISEMENT
鈥淥ur free kicks are usually pretty good,鈥� Riley continued. 鈥淯sually, it鈥檚 Reed or Lincoln (Schmitt) kicking them or Charlie (Zellmann). It鈥檚 really important to score on (set-piece chances) in section games, because those might be the best chances you get. We had two of them tonight.鈥�
A second chance
Coaches often make remarks about yearning to see teams for a second time in the postseason after a tough regular-season loss.
While Toward didn鈥檛 explicitly say he wanted the Jacks to get another crack at second-seeded Sartell after a season-opening 2-1 loss, it鈥檚 a welcomed rematch between two teams that feel like they can contend for a state tournament bid.
鈥淲e just have to go in with confidence, but not too much confidence,鈥� Riley said. 鈥淲e have to act like it鈥檚 our game to win, even though (Sartell) won the first one. We want to get back at them. We want our revenge.鈥�
Toward鈥檚 toughest challenge hasn鈥檛 been posed by an opponent through 80 minutes yet. Rather, it鈥檚 the struggle to keep the emotions of amped-up teenagers in check. At times on Thursday, Brainerd was afforded opportunities that otherwise wouldn鈥檛 have been given if Bemidji had played with level heads.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 know if you can see me (during the game), but I鈥檓 imploring these guys to calm down,鈥� Toward said, mimicking an arm-flapping gesture he made to his players to temper in-game emotions. 鈥淲e鈥檙e playing with our hair on fire and we鈥檙e up 2-0. Calm down, guys. So yeah, we definitely (want to) approach the game differently. We call it managing the game. You can be in control, dictate the pace. You can control everything. But they鈥檙e (17 years old), so they don鈥檛 always do that.鈥�
It鈥檚 the mark of a team still going through some firsts. This unit of Jacks hosted its first playoff game and now has its first home playoff win.
ADVERTISEMENT
鈥淚t鈥檚 almost impossible to replicate in a practice setting,鈥� Toward said on handling the emotions of a playoff game. 鈥淭he experience they have in games like this where they can calm down and see the benefits, hopefully that transfers into the next game. But this game was chaotic, and part of that has to do with how they play and how their opponent plays.鈥�
Losing to Sartell over a month and a half ago left a bitter aftertaste that will carry through Tuesday鈥檚 tilt. It鈥檚 a loss that Toward believes cost his team a second home playoff game. But he鈥檚 convinced that the growth his team made throughout the fall will lend itself to a fair shot at keeping the Jacks鈥� season alive for at least two more days.
鈥淲e鈥檙e a team now,鈥� Toward said. 鈥淓arly in the season, we blended a bunch of guys who played on two separate teams in the summer. We had a (goalkeeper) who was in his first varsity match. He鈥檚 much more confident and better now. But the most important thing is they believe in each other. They鈥檙e a team now.鈥�
Bemidji 3, Brainerd 0
BRD 0 0 鈥� 0
BHS 2 1 鈥� 3
Bemidji 鈥� Riley 8鈥� (Johnson), 75鈥�; Stone 12鈥�.
ADVERTISEMENT
Brainerd 鈥� No scoring.
Saves 鈥� Heuer (BEM) 3; Stengrim (BRD) 3.
The Trust Project
