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CEDAR RAPIDS — Prairie City-Monroe girls soccer coach Bill Sowder has sent the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union a few emails about his displeasure of how the classifications are set up in his sport.
And until things change, he will continue to do what he can to make things right.
“I disapprove on how they do the classifications,” Sowder said. “There is no way we should be playing a team like Cedar Rapids Xavier. We have a 1A conference, play most of our games against 1A schools and then are forced to play 2A for the playoffs. It’s not always about the numbers. They have to look at more than just that.”
PCM has sharing agreements with Colfax-Mingo and Lynnville-Sully and that bumped the Mustangs up to Class 2A for the postseason.
That gave them a matchup with No. 5 Cedar Rapids Xavier, and the Saints had their way for the entire match, winning 10-0 and ending the contest in the 72nd minute, during a Region 7 semifinal at Heco Field.
The Saints had a 46-0 advantage in shots and a 24-0 surplus in shots on goal.
“I am proud of the girls. They play hard start to finish. They didn’t quit,” Sowder said. “We have a young team. But we have really young goalies. For them to step up and do this, I am proud of them. Playing goalie is not easy.”
Freshman McKeely Tjaden played the first 48 minutes in net. Xavier led 4-0 at halftime but Tjaden made 11 saves. She was peppered with six more shots in the first 10 minutes of the second half and pulled when the Saints went up 7-0.
Sophomore Kayla Dustin came on in relief. She made six saves and allowed the final three goals.
Sowder’s gameplan was to mark Xavier senior Katelyn Ives early and force someone else to beat them.
Ives had other ideas though as she scored two goals in the first 10 minutes and the Saints (8-7) cruised from there.
PCM’s playoff roster included just two seniors, Kennah Walters and Kaylee Stubbs.
The duo was part of a program that won four more games in 2015 than it did last year.
“It was a heck of a season and a heck of a turn around. I couldn’t be prouder of this team and these girls,” Walters said. “I am going to miss them next year. We had a tough game tonight, but we did the best we could.”
Like Sowder, Walters also feels frustration in having to play a school like Xavier. The Saints are 4A for girls’ sports that have five classes.
“There is no way we should be going against a team like this. It’s unfortunate. We have barely enough kids to field a team even with the sharing of schools,” said Walters, who leaves for United States Air Force basic training in San Antonio on June 15.
For the Saints, Ingrid Husby recorded a hat trick in the second half and Sydney Wright also scored twice.
McKenna Lloyd and Elena Minor each tallied one goal for the Saints, who will host Independence in the regional final at 5 p.m. Monday. Independence knocked off Marion, 4-1.
For Sowder, while his team improved its win total by four from the previous year, the ending leaves a bit of a sour taste in his mouth.
“You can’t make a program grow in high school when they get beat 10-0 like this. It’s not fun,” Sowder said. “And it’s not fun for the other team either. Xavier doesn’t get any better by beating us 10-0.
“Getting beat 10-0 just creates more kids not wanting to play, which then hurts numbers, and then we have an even bigger issue. It’s not right. And it’s not just us. CMB had to play Urbandale. How does that happen?”
Notebook
Cedar Rapids Xavier’s enrollment number for soccer is 530. PCM’s number, with Colfax-Mingo and Lynnville-Sully included, is 488. The Mustangs did not have anyone from L-S on this year’s team. If you take L-S out of the final tally, PCM likely plays this year’s postseason in 1A.