Email |

D-B girls soccer team punches ticket to Chattanooga with win over West

Published October 31st, 2009 | 0 Comments

KINGSPORT — Dobyns-Bennett is going going, back back to Chattanooga.

Rain, wind, the loss of a major piece of the puzzle — the Lady Indians overcame it all to stamp their ticket to the TSSAA Class AAA girls soccer tournament for the second straight season.

A 1-0 win over surprising Knox West at Indian Highland Park on Saturday afternoon in the round of 16 was drenched in the same tension that enveloped last year’s sectional match against Bearden. The result, too, was the same.

“Last year, I told the girls I thought we would go to state and they thought I was crazy,” Tribe coach Shane Calvert said. “This year, I think they realized they could do it. This one honestly means more than last year.

“It’s two years in a row. This shows that D-B has become (an elite) program and there’s some stability there.”

The Tribe will be making consecutive trips to state for the first time since 1993-95 when Bill McCloskey led D-B to three state appearances in a row. That run ended with the program’s first — and only — state championship.

This year’s edition is hoping for a similar conclusion.

The Lady Indians will have to do it without a critical piece at the back. Senior Sydney Collette, an all-district defender, suffered a season-ending ankle injury within the opening five minutes of the match.

Collette’s absence on Saturday was noticeable early but, as time progressed, D-B (16-3-2) settled and even improved. The Lady Indians’ lone tally, through the tireless Katie Clark, came after 25 minutes.

Calvert was ecstatic with his players’ response to adversity.

“We lost one of our better defenders today and when that happened, we didn’t quit. We didn’t shut down,” he said. “We kept fighting. Our girls wanted this and battled for it.

“Sydney’s a great player. We’re definitely going to miss her. But our girls want this bad. They’re working so hard as a team, which is so important.”

Senior Kate Jones — who moved from her familiar role in midfield to Collette’s sweeper position following the injury, and excelled — wasn’t sure how the Tribe overcame the loss of Collette.

“To be honest, I’m not sure how we did that,” Jones said. “Ever since my sophomore year, Sydney’s been in the defense for like every single game. It was different.

“We’re pretty versatile, though, and luckily we pulled it out.”

Jones served as the catalyst on what proved to be the game-winning goal. Breaking forward from her own penalty area following a neat dispossession, Jones sighted Clark in the center of the park.

Clark latched onto the through ball, slalomed past three defenders — two at the edge of the box — and let fly. Her effort sizzled past West goalie Keagan McCoy at her far post.

“We’ve got so many players playing at the next level,” Calvert said. “I didn’t think Katie could get to another level, but she has. We talked about getting into fifth gear. I think she is definitely in fifth gear. We might have to get a sixth for her.”

D-B wasn’t troubled until fullback Julie Gilmer was forced to preserve the Lady Indians’ halftime lead with a goal-line clearance in the 37th minute.

The second half featured West (8-6-5) piling on the pressure, via possession, without really threatening D-B’s goal.

Breanna Durbin tested Indians goalkeeper Lauren McInturff with a well-struck effort from distance after 49 minutes. It represented the Rebels’ best chance of the afternoon.

“This team plays hard, but Kingsport plays really good defense,” West coach Sonny Trotter said. “We had a good shot at winning.

“They made the one goal and it stood up. I didn’t think it would stand up, to be honest with you.”

The Lady Indians now prepare for another trip to the south end of the state. Girls Preparatory School of Chattanooga will host the tournament’s final three rounds Nov. 4-5 and Nov. 7.

Jones, for one, is just now coming to terms with the idea of being a perennial state contender — like the newly crowned state champion Tribe volleyball team, for instance.

“I have tons of friends on the volleyball team,” she said. “I used to be like, ‘Wow, they went to state’ when they would make it. Then basketball made it.

“I guess we’re one of those teams now. It’s nice.”

Discuss This Story

Be the first to comment: Sign In or Create Profile .

To comment, you must register.

Comments are the sole responsibility of the registered user participating in online discussions. You agree not to post comments off topic, abusive, obscene, defamatory, vulgar, threatening or an invasion of privacy. Violators may be banned.

Click here to review our complete user agreement.