Sallee, Bohlmann power East to fifth-place win

May 18—ROCK SPRINGS — Before the state tournament started, Cheyenne East coach Alex Stratton told his team that his main goal coming away from the Wyoming Class 4A state soccer tournament was to bring home hardware.

Through the first 100 minutes of play, that dream looked bleak. After an emotional, come-from-behind win in a shootout against Rock Springs on Friday, the stage was set to achieve that goal Saturday against Natrona County.

The Thunderbirds did not disappoint, scoring a pair of goals in the second half to claim the fifth-place trophy with a 2-0 win over the Mustangs.

"It's tough losing that first game because it puts you in a pickle, but I thought our team battled back," junior forward Hunter Sallee said. "That was a hard-fought game against Rock Springs and today, we woke up and were sore, but for the seniors it was their last game, so we worked hard a knew we had to come out on top.

"There was no other choice."

East dominated the opening 40 minutes of play, holding Rock Springs to just a pair of shot attempts and applied heavy pressure throughout the first frame. Armando Hernandez had an early chance less than two minutes into the contest, but his attempt was stopped by Natrona County keeper Zach Hawley.

The T-Birds put up 12 shot attempts in the first half, four of which found their way onto the frame. Each one of those shots on goal were dangerous chances that were handled by Hawley.

Senior forward Brenden Bohlmann also hit three posts in the first half, with his best attempt coming on a header that went off the inside of the crossbar. The misfires were something Bohlmann blamed on a new pair of cleats, according to Sallee.

Despite being held off the scoreboard in the first half, there wasn't any panic in the T-Birds halftime huddle.

"The team took care of that," Stratton said. "They were excited and encouraging each other at the halftime. We probably had the most energy and togetherness today, and that showed in our play"

East's patience was rewarded in the 45th minute. After a free kick handcuffed Hawley, the ball bounced right to Sallee just off the left post, who buried it to give East a 1-0 lead.

The goal woke up Natrona, which controlled the next 10 minutes of play. The best chance for the Mustangs to even the score came in the 49th minute, when senior forward Jael Reyes hit the crossbar from just a few feet outside the goalie box.

While the Mustangs were pushing, East never felt out of control.

"We are successful when we have possession and have a little bit of build up," Stratton said. "I'm just thankful that (we made it easy on ourselves) and fast and simple makes a lot of success."

After hitting the post three times in the first half, Bohlmann finally got an attempt to find the back of the net. In the 60th, the senior blasted a shot into the upper-right corner of the net from 25 yards out to put East up 2-0.

It proved to be the final nail in Natrona's coffin.

"We were (a little) discouraged after that first game, but we are family," Sallee said. "We stuck together and we battled back. I love this team and wouldn't want to be with anyone else."

While East loses 10 seniors off its roster heading into next season, it returns a good portion of the roster that helped get it back to the state tournament.

After taking positive steps in the right direction, Stratton said he excited for what the future holds for the T-Birds.

"Everybody participated and played really well," the coach said. "We have some freshmen and sophomores on the JV squad that we are looking at, as well. There is a lot of hope and excitement for the years to come, as we build expectations and the style of play that I want."

EAST 2, NATRONA 0

Halftime: Tied 0-0.

Goals: East, Sallee (unassisted), 45, East, Bohlmann (Taylor), 60.

Shots: East 21, Natrona 7. Shots on goal: East 9, Natrona 2. Saves: East 2 (Miller 1, Pinto 1), Natrona 7 (Hawley 5, Mcnamee 2).

Corner kicks: East 2, Natrona 3. Offsides: East 1, Natrona 0. Fouls: East 15, Natrona 8. Yellow cards: East 3 (Sallee, 45, Taylor, 49, Yack, 76), Natrona 2 (Stoneking, 61).

Matt Atencio covers Laramie County prep sports for WyoSports. He can be reached at matencio@wyosports.net. Follow him on X at @MattAtencio5.