Bruins’ forward Thomas Spratt controls the ball after getting past two Sutherlin defenders on his way to scoring the Bruins’ lone goal of the game. The Bruins tied the game 1-1 on the goal. The Pilot/ Jef Hatch

The Brookings-Harbor High School Bruins boys soccer team took what could have been a demoralizing first goal by the Sutherlin Bulldogs 15 minutes into the second half of Thursday’s game and turned it into an energizing force for change, scoring the tying goal in the waning moments of the second half.

Senior Thomas Spratt took the ball and after juking three Bulldog defenders was able to put it in the goal just past the goalie’s outstretched arms.

“I was thinking about the next one,” Spratt said of his thoughts after scoring. “I wanted Chandler to get the ball going and the defense to hammer down.”

 An apparent lack of intensity led to the Bruins going scoreless for the entire first half and well into the second, while a number of saves by senior goalie Chandler Gotfried kept them out of trouble. 

The only ball to get past Gotfried bounced around the penalty box and was a fluke according to Spratt.

“We haven’t had a real goal scored on us yet this season,” Spratt said. 

Gotfried claimed he didn’t know what happened when the goal went in.

“The defenders were working really hard, I just don’t know,” he said. “Team did great, I feel like we played really well.”

Head Coach Pancho Garcia agreed with Gotfried on how well the team did, but acknowledged that there were some areas that needed to be worked on.

“Imprecise passes,” Garcia said. “We had a lot of imprecise passes because the kids weren’t 100 percent on the field today.”

Garcia said that a number of the teams starters, including Spratt, Nick Corpening and others were sick just days before the contest and other team members were recovering from injuries.

The lack of intesity was a concern for Garcia as well, but he cited the Bulldogs’ goal as a good incentive for the Bruins to pick up the pace.

“When you molest a bear it comes back at you strong,” he said. “I hate to say it, but it takes someone to score on you to get the intensity some times.”

While the Bruins may have faced their toughest competition in the Far West League in the form of the Sutherlin Bulldogs, they’ll need to keep up the intensity levels to stay in first place.

“Lack of intensity would cause more opportunities for the other team,” Spratt said. “This was one of the best teams. They’re supposed to be number one. They’re supposed to be better than us, and our defense did really well.”

Garcia agreed, “I think the team could have beat them.”

The Bruins’ next game is at 3 p.m. on Tuesday at South Umpqua High School.