MISSOULA — Montana’s 2-0 victory over Boise State on Thursday afternoon at South Campus Stadium in Missoula — the No. 9 team in the United Soccer Coaches West Region defeating the No. 3 team in the Pacific Region — was sweet of its own accord.
It was one high-level team holding serve at home, knocking off another high-level team, one that entered the match with a 6-1-0 record and averaging nearly two and a half goals per match.
Behind two goals from Chloe Seelhoff, the Grizzlies (6-2-2) extended their one-sided mastery over the Broncos, improving to 8-0-2 in their last 10 matchups, and finished non-conference with an unblemished 6-0-0 record at South Campus Stadium without a single goal allowed.
But it’s the details that give what Montana pulled off on Thursday its weightiness.
The Grizzlies were already down two all-region players and another key starter, all out with injury. On Thursday, Montana coach Chris Citowicki learned he’d be down another starter, this one for COVID of all things.
It’s almost as if the soccer gods are trying to see just how far the Grizzlies can bend before they break. Hasn’t happened yet. In fact, it only seems to be making them stronger.
“We have to give a lot of credit to the depth of the squad,” Citowicki said. “We were missing another player today and people are going in and doing the job. That’s the most impressive thing. I can tell you this, this is one of my favorite teams I’ve ever coached. Just no quit, no quit whatsoever.”
In a matchup like Thursday’s, the first goal was going to be huge for the team scoring it. That happened to be Montana, and it came less than two minutes into the match when a cross to the front of goal was whistled dead for a handball.
Seelhoff stepped up and scored the penalty kick easily inside the left post, giving her two goals in less than three minutes of game time after scoring in the 90th minute in last Thursday’s 4-0 home win over North Dakota.
“Getting a goal early sets the tone, especially for our team,” Seelhoff said. “Once we get a goal, we lock in and play our best defense because we know we cannot get scored on, especially at home.”
Still, a goal was expected out of the Broncos, perhaps multiple. After all, Boise State had outscored its opponents 17-5 through its first seven matches, scoring two or more goals in all six of its wins.
But it never came as Montana performed defensive magic on the field, being everywhere all at once. The Broncos were limited to six shots in the first half. All seemed to be heavily contested.
“Boise plays a style that is a bit more direct,” said Citowicki. “They are comfortable making the game uncomfortable and live in it when the ball in bouncing and in the air. They try to get through you that way.
“You have to be able to match their physicality and speed. When you look at them, they are all like three heads taller than us, so what are we going to do? We had to compete and the kids competed today.”
Citowicki went just three players into his bench, two of them forwards, meaning the players who do the dirty work on the defensive end of the field were in it for the long haul.
But they took their tactics for defending Boise State and paired it with an intensity and a refusal to back down or give in. There was no other option.
“That comes from the heart of this team,” said Ally Henrikson, one of three field players who went all 90 minutes, “all 32 players coming together and leaving everything we have on the field.
“The bench, I have to shout them out. Their energy just fueled us. They are a fire on this team, the bench mafia. They are such a big asset.”
A 1-0 lead at the half was an earned advantage but far from comfortable. Seelhoff gave the Grizzlies some breathing room and margin for error when she scored less than three minutes into the second half to make it 2-0.
Seelhoff pinned her defender on her high side, took a feed from Carly Whalen and broke into space on the right side of goal. Her blast went off Boise goalkeeper Genevieve Crenshaw’s hands and into the left side of the goal.
That makes it three goals in two matches for Seelhoff, who has been untethered since Montana made a formation change prior to the North Dakota match. The Grizzlies have outscored their last two opponents 6-0, with Seelhoff scoring half of those goals.
“That’s Chloe playing in the spot Chloe is supposed to play,” said Citowicki. “I sent her a text earlier. I told her, I’ve never seen you play so free and open as you did against North Dakota. This is the formation that’s set up to maximize your strengths.
“Just do whatever you want to do today, just fly. Even sent her a picture of a bird. Just fly, Chloe, just fly. She was amazing today.”
The formation change has allowed Seelhoff to frequently get the ball in space, which is good for her, not so much for the opponent.
“Something I like to do is find runs in behind, little tricky runs where I can lose my mark or face up on players with the ball at my feet, which I really like to do,” said Seelhoff, who took a shot less than a minute later that went off the right post, inches from the program’s 18th hat trick.
“Today I had chances to do that. This was probably the most fun game we’ve played yet. My teammates are setting me up perfectly. Shout out to Carly Whalen. That’s her second assist to me. I’m just enjoying this formation and being a bird and playing free.”
Boise State more than doubled its shots in the second half, taking 13, but only one of those was on goal, allowing Bayliss Flynn to collect her fourth shutout in five starts while making three saves for the match.
“There were portions of the second half when we kind of strayed from the identity and let them get back into the game but in terms of handling what we knew was coming, the through balls and the set pieces, we handled it well for the most part,” added Citowicki.
Montana won’t play again until hosting Northern Arizona on Sunday, Sept. 29, when the Grizzlies open their Big Sky Conference schedule.
