Shodair Soccer Classic showcases Whitefish's best

The 10th annual Shodair Soccer Classic took place in Helena on Saturday, with the games showcasing the best graduates from A and AA high school teams across the state.

The weeklong tournament is an annual effort to raise awareness about the Shodair Children's Hospital in Helena. Shodair works with children and adolescents in Montana who suffer from emotional, mental and behavioral problems.

Four players represented Whitefish on the women's side — Kelsey McCluskey, Carly Lengstorf, Megan Powell and Kylee Smith, while three Bulldogs took the field for the men's team — Jake Danczyk, Marc Hotzfield and Patrick Jones.

In the women's game, the Whitefish graduates played on the White team alongside players from Flathead, Libby, Polson, Missoula, Helena and Great Falls.

Traditionally teams were split up as East and West, but due to the dominance by the West in past years and an uneven number of players from each side, players were divided without regard for geographical location.

However, it ended up that the Red team was primarily made of players from the east while White mostly represented the west.

After a goal in the 33rd minute by C.M. Russell's Nicole Hickey, Whitefish forward Kylee Smith found the net again to put the White squad up 2-0.

Smith headed in a rebound after a missed shot on goal by Kelli Hubley, of Helena. The header found the right side of the net, and proved to be the game-winning goal.

The Red team would tack on a goal in the 77th minute for a final score of 2-1.

For White's coach, Lini Reading, of Whitefish, the Shodair Classic was a great chance to give kudos to her former players' achievements on and off the field.

"All the players representing Whitefish were instrumental in the success of the team," Reading said. "They were all deserving to play in that venue."

Yet, it wasn't all about goals and tackles at the weeklong event.

Players also helped host a free soccer clinic for young children ages 3 to 12 and later attended a banquet that explained the goals of Shodair.

"I hope the players took away an appreciation for Shodair and a sense of good fortune in their lives' said Reading. "I think they all made some new friends, had fun and found a new love for the game."

Reading says all of the Whitefish players invited to the Classic will most likely go on to play soccer at the collegiate level or on university club teams.