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North Tahoe, Truckee girls battle to 2-2 tie

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For the first time this decade, the matchup between the Truckee and North Tahoe girls’ soccer teams didn’t end in a Wolverines’ victory.

The Lady Lakers battled back from a 2-1 deficit at Truckee on Saturday, finding the equalizer late in the second half to force a 2-2 draw.

“Truckee, it’s always a good battle between our two teams,” said six-year Coach Stephanie Bales. “I knew the girls were ready to play. We’ve had a rough few seasons on this field.”

North Tahoe had previously lost 16 straight against Truckee, according to MaxPreps.com, dating back to 2010.

The Wolverines, who had yet to yield a goal through four league games, jumped out to a 1-0 advantage after junior Taya Matt received a through ball from junior Carly Davis.

“Taya just got to the ball first and got a good touch on it to beat the keeper,” said Truckee Head Coach Kevin Nichols.

North Tahoe evened the game later in the first half on a goal by senior Maya Wong.

“It was a nice ball from out wide, and she sailed it over the goalie,” said Bales on the deep strike by Wong.

The Wolverines responded before halftime with an unassisted goal by sophomore Kailea Kelly.

The Lakers would control much of the second half, winning the battle of possession before senior Hallie Clute drilled a deep direct kick to tie the game.

Truckee would have several opportunities to regain the lead, but had a number of attacks halted by offsides calls. 

“We don’t normally try to play an offsides trap,” said Bales. “We weren’t trying to do that today, it just worked out for us that way.”

North Tahoe would nearly take the lead in the final moments of the game on a ball that bounced over the Wolverines’ keeper, but a Truckee defender was there to drive the ball out of bounds.

The Wolverines would have their own opportunity to win the game when Matt broke free during the final sequence, but her shot on goal went directly at sophomore keeper Annie Kratz, who hauled in the save to ensure a tie game.

(Kratz) did a great job back there,” said Bales. “She kept us in the game. She made some great saves for us, and coming out defensively and making big plays.”

For the three-time defending state champions, Truckee, the tie is a rare occurrence for a program that has lost just four league games since the start of the 2014 season.

“It was a tough half,” said Nichols on the second half of play. “They were playing a high-pressure style, high-line defense, so it was kind of a condensed field. Not a lot of passing through the midfield … we had a few tight offsides calls.”

Truckee (4-3-1, 4-0-1 Northern League) will next face rivals South Tahoe (5-2-1, 4-0-1 Northern League) on the road on Monday. The programs have squared off in the past two state championship games.

“Each team’s got a different style,” said Nichols on facing the Vikings. “So, we’ll be playing a different opponent in South Tahoe this week — a much different game.”

North Tahoe (3-4-2, 3-2-2 Northern League will travel to play Sparks (4-4, 3-3 Northern League) on Tuesday.

Truckee boys take 4-0 win against North Tahoe

On the boys’ side, Truckee captured a 4-0 victory at home on Friday against North Tahoe.

The Wolverines (2-5-1, 2-2-1 Northern League will next travel to play Sparks (10-0, 6-0 Northern League) on Friday.

North Tahoe (4-3-1, 3-2-1 Northern League) will face Sparks at home on Tuesday.

*Statistics courtesy of MaxPreps.

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