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Photo by Sam Harrel

The West Valley girls started their season off right thanks to the foot of Jovia Manzie.

The Wolfpack junior connected on the only goal of the game as the Wolfpack claimed a 1-0 win over North Pole in a season-opening soccer matchup at West Valley on Tuesday.

Manzie took a pass from sophomore Shelby Solomon on the left side of the field, took a couple touches toward the net and then sent a strike into the upper left corner of the net.

“It was actually a pretty nice shot,” West Valley coach Greg Gibson said.

West Valley’s defense, anchored by goaltender Mackenzie Maxwell, went on to blank the Patriots to preserve the Mid Alaska Conference victory.

“(Maxwell) did pretty well. The defensive line in front of her played hard and it limited the number of times she had to touch it,” Gibson said. “She kept them organized and nothing got that close to going in.

“It’s always nice to get a win first. North Pole has some strong players in the midfield and they gave us trouble. It took us a while to get it under control, but hopefully this is the start of some good play for us.”

Results of the West Valley/North Pole boys game were not reported.

The West Valley boys and girls take on Hutchison today at Allridge Field, with the boys game starting at 5:30 p.m. and the girls contest following at 7:15. North Pole plays at Lathrop on Saturday.

Patriots baseball

After a tough trip to Juneau, Mike McCallister gave the North Pole Patriots a big lift.

McCallister tossed a no-hitter Tuesday and the Patriots offense capitalized on West Valley miscues as the Patriots opened Mid Alaska Conference play with a 15-0 win over the Wolfpack at West Valley.

It was a big win for the Patriots, who came in after losing all four games on a road trip against Juneau-Douglas and Sitka.

And McCallister did the heavy lifting, striking out six and walking one through five innings.

“He was on, or they were pretty off, what do you want to say? We’re not Delta, though,” Patriots head coach Vic Aure said, referencing the Wolfpack’s lopsided win over Delta Junction on Saturday.

“They did well,” Aure added. “We just came from Juneau. We played the best of the best, so that only made our game better.”

McCallister starred off the mound as well, going 4-for-4 with three RBIs. Chris Aure also drove in three on a 3-for-4 performance.

For the Wolfpack, it was a frustrating evening at bat and in the field.

“You can say that it was one of those days. I think the most important thing that happened, we had 15 errors,” Wolfpack coach Dave Hall said. “We couldn’t catch the ball or throw the ball. It would have been a much different game if we caught the ball and threw the ball.

“Pitching-wise, they (West Valley’s pitchers) didn’t pitch flawlessly, but they pitched well enough to keep us in the ball game if we hit the ball. But we didn’t even hit the ball. We didn’t hit the ball, catch the ball or throw the ball.”

The Wolfpack play host to Eielson at 6 p.m. today at West Valley, while the Patriots face Lathrop on Friday.

North Pole softball

The North Pole coaching staff told Liz Hall to keep it simple, just throw strikes.

So far, it seems to be working.

Hall followed up Monday’s no-hitter with another strong outing, holding Eielson to one run while striking out six as the Patriots claimed a 6-1 victory over the Ravens Tuesday at the IGSA fields.

“She needs to improve on her approach out there, but overall, she’s doing a good job. She’s putting the ball over the plate, not missing a lot,” Patriots coach Rod Avery said.

Hall has issued two walks over her last two games, which includes Monday’s no-hitter against Delta Junction, and five free passes over the Patriots’ six games.

“That’s not bad,” Avery said.

Hall helped her own cause with two RBIs, while Tasha Thomas and Nicole Chalstrom also plated a pair.

Angela Wheeler added a triple and Ashley Webster connected for a base hit in her first plate appearance in high school.

“For her to get a hit in her first time at bat was pretty cool,” Avery said.

Eielson’s lone run came thanks to Michele Cook, who reached on a base hit, stole second and third, then scored on an error.

“Michele Cook is a little girl, about 4-11, 5 foot. She’s fast, she’s left-handed,” Eielson coach Shane McAfee said. “We’re trying to teach her the slap-hit. That’s a very hard skill to master. If she gets on the base, she’s definitely a threat.”

The Ravens ran into trouble when their catcher, freshman Raven McAfee, fractured her finger, leaving Shane scrambling to find a replacement.

Eventually, senior shortstop Erica Olson stepped up and finished the game behind the plate.

“She came in, finished the game off for us and did well,” McAfee said.

Eielson plays again today in a doubleheader against Delta, while the Patriots take on Dimond at 6 p.m. on Friday at the IGSA fields, then play Colony on Saturday.