Varsity - BHS vs Roosevelt 11-21-25

Bellevue 1-0 Roosevelt

60th min 1-0 Ava FK

This is going to be a short recap. Really. With less than 24 hours before the 3A final, our entire focus is now on playing Liberty for a State Championship (winners 3-2 in a 7th round shootout over Eastside Catholic). Let's see how I do... 

In our Semi-Final, we were matched up with Metro regular season champions and familiar foe Roosevelt for the third time in the last four years in the Final Four ('22 final 1-0 Bellevue, '24 Semi 1-2 OT Roosevelt...and last night). We started the game...a bit..well...jittery (understatement alert)? But just before I was about to execute on the rarely seen ten player simultaneous "line-change" substitution, we began to settle down and play our way out of a nervy start. Before almost every game I remind the team that the "table stakes" for each game, the minimum requirement that each of them can control, is effort and attitude. Even the very best players in the world have gamedays where technical skills aren't as sharp as expected, so we control what we can control: effort and attitude. Effort leads to confidence, and confidence to ball control and poise. 

We regrouped at halftime, talked about "breathing through our eyelids like a lava lizard" (sage advice from Annie to Nuke Laloosh in Bull Durham to get the young phenom to stop overthinking), and took the field looking more like the Bellevue team we have watched all season. 

Then the game pivoted on three critical moments in the second half:

1. In the 55th minute, Katelyn made a terrific save from a Roosevelt free kick diving to her right at full stretch. 

2. Just a few minutes later in the 60th minute, Mack got fouled a whisker outside of the box, and Ava curled a magnificent free kick over the keeper into the far corner. 1-0 Bellevue. In her last four free kicks, Ava has two goals and two crossbars hit...not a bad ratio for accuracy and power (then just a minute later Saleen smashed a shot off of the underside of the crossbar from a well taken corner and the momentum was fully in our favor...) 

3. Katelyn made another wonderful save, tipping the ball over the crossbar to preserve our lead late in the game.

Then our entire team shut down Roosevelt for the remaining minutes of the game, playing tenacious, smart, and organized defense. FTJ. 

Now we have the opportunity to play for a State Championship. Our magic number is now 1. Well done everyone.    

Final thoughts: our bench was amazing last night, not only for the important minutes given on the field, but for keeping our team energy up and positive. It makes a difference for the mentality of a team if substitutes are winning the "sideline game" of positivity and support. Lola even wore "the hat," an important team talisman that has graced the Sparks sideline for our last three Final Fours. Also, big thanks our supporters in the stands for lending us your energy (especially when we really needed it early in the first half).

See you this afternoon at Sparks, we'll be breathing through our eyelids like a lava lizard.