Baethke records hat trick, Tigers bounce back

Spencer and Western Christian scored their combined nine goals in threes Monday, and it was the No. 2 Tigers who recorded the final trio as Spencer bounced back from its first loss with a 6-3 win over the Wolfpack.

The win allowed Spencer to clinch at least a share of its second straight Lakes Conference title. The Tigers are 5-1 in the league, Western Christian is 3-3 and in second place.

"It was a lot better performance than against Storm Lake, the unfortunate thing is it's an 80-minute game, and we played well for 20 minutes in each half," said Spencer coach Ben MacRae. "For two 20-minute stretches, we were absolutely outstanding, but we have to play a full 80 minutes. If we don't start doing that soon, we will get found out.

"I know we can play better. On the balance of things, to get a 6-3 victory and to rebound from last week's loss, we're pretty happy with it, but there's certainly more to come."

Carson Baethke recorded a hat trick for Spencer, knocking home the final three goals to help the Tigers pull away.

Locked in a 3-3 tie after Western Christian scored its last goal 15 minutes into the second half, Baethke answered with his first score three minutes later, chipping a 40-yard shot over the goal keeper's head after a misplayed kick brought the keeper away from his goal.

With 15 minutes left, Scott Pruitt assisted Baethke on his second goal; six minutes later, Baethke received an assist from Alex Toay to cap the hat trick.

Toay and Pruitt had helped put Spencer up 3-0 in the first 23 minutes.

Toay scored his team-leading 16th goal 10 minutes into the contest and Pruitt added his first goal of the season in the 21st minute.

"It was nice to get Scott Pruitt back tonight. He's an extremely talented dribbler and he's very creative," MacRae said. "No one likes to defend against someone like that -- he's dynamic."

Mak Kloewer scored Spencer's third goal in the 23rd minute.

"When we look to play quick and direct, when we look to knock the ball to feet and play one-two touch, there isn't another team in Iowa that can live with us," MacRae said. "If we can learn to do it for a full 80 minutes, we'll be tough to stop. We're right up there with the best in the state of Iowa."

Western Christian cut its halftime deficit to 3-1 with a goal in the final seven minutes of the first half. The Wolfpack scored two minutes into the second half and in the 55th minute on a penalty kick.

Spencer had 17 shots to Western Christian's 7. The Tigers move to 8-1 on the year.