The Lady Zephyrs soccer team finished the regular season with a 4-1 loss to Parkland, but it was significant in that they became the first team in over 1,200 minutes of soccer to score against Parkland, snapping a 15-game shutout streak. Whether it was revenge for snapping that streak or something else, Parkland came out on fire when the two teams met five days later in the EPC semifinals where Parkland downed Whitehall 8-0 en route to their third straight conference title.

Even with the disappointing loss to Parkland, Whitehall (12-5-1) earned the number-two seed in the District 11 Tournament, which got underway this week. Whitehall hosts the winner of the Liberty and Pocono Mountain West game tonight in the district quarterfinals. During the regular season, Whitehall didn’t play Pocono Mountain West, but beat up on Liberty 7-0 back in late September.

“We came out flat-footed [in the 8-0 loss to Parkland] and when you do that against a good team, they’re going to beat you. It was just one of those games where they made the plays, took advantage of our mistakes and beat us,” said coach Chris Bleam.

The only blemishes on the Whitehall record late in the season came in their two games against Parkland. Other than that, the Zephyrs won seven of their last nine games and 10 of their last 13 games to establish themselves as one of the teams to beat in the District 11 Tournament. The good news is that Whitehall wouldn’t have to face Parkland (22-0) again until the district finals should both teams go that far in the tournament.

“This time of year, you’re always facing a good team. Our girls just need to understand that we can’t come out like we did in the conference game against Parkland, we have to come out fast and play hard for 80-minutes if we’re going to go far in districts,” said Bleam.

Whitehall started the season with a 2-2-1 record, but turned things around from that point, with the only regular season blemishes coming against Emmaus and Parkland. The Hornets come into the District 11 Tournament seeded fourth. In their final 12 games prior to the 8-0 loss to Parkland, Whitehall outscored their opponents 47-10, including a stretch with four straight shutouts and a streak that saw them outscore teams 24-1.

For their efforts this season, Whitehall put two players – senior Cara Bonshak and freshman Kate Bonshak – on the EPC First Team All-Stars. Senior Kylee Cunningham was named to the Second Team All-Stars.

“There are so many good players in this league,” said Bleam. “It’s hard to narrow the list down, but we certainly had players deserving of being on that list and I’m happy for our girls that got the recognition.”