By Josh McFadden | [email protected]

A new girls soccer playoff format allowed every team in Class 6A to participate in the postseason. The top six teams even got a bye in the first round. Though Bingham narrowly missed out on the opening bye with a No. 7 seed, the team made the most of its first two games. 

Bingham drew a home game with 26th-seeded Cyprus on Oct. 10, and the Pirates from Region 2 were no match for the Miners. As expected, Bingham didn’t have many problems with Cyprus, which managed just two wins during the regular season. The Miners scored four goals in each half and posted an 8-0 shutout to advance to the second round. 

It was the 12th shutout of the season for Bingham. Goalkeeper Hope Ramirez and her defensive teammates did their jobs, and the offense was dominant. Seven Miners scored in the game, led by Kallie James, who scored twice. Berkley Payne, Jaida Thomas, Kassy Leonce, Megan Beckman, Payton Haycock and Sarah Feldman also scored. The blowout tied Bingham’s largest margin of victory of the season. The Miners routed West Jordan 9-1 to open the 2019 campaign. 

Bingham’s second-round game on Oct. 15 was much more challenging, and it came against a familiar foe. 

The Miners squeaked by Riverton 2-1, defeating the Silverwolves for the first time in three tries on the season. The triumph avenged a pair of 2-1 losses to Riverton, which occurred Sept. 5 and Sept. 24. In fact, the Silverwolves, which placed third in Region 3, gave Bingham its only two league defeats. 

In the second-round game, Bingham delighted the home crowd by breaking a 1-1 halftime tie and earning the victory. James and Leonce scored for Bingham, and the defense stepped in the second half to help preserve the win.

Bingham, 14-3-1, advanced to the state quarterfinals to play at second-seeded American Fork on Oct. 17 where they fell in a heartbreaking shootout loss. 

The Miners captured the Region crown by finishing league play with a 7-2-1 mark, just in front of 6-3-1 Copper Hills. The Miners allowed just five goals in region action and had only given up 10 all year heading into the quarterfinals. Bingham allowed more than two goals just once during the season, and only Riverton managed two goals against the Miners. In every other game, the team surrendered just a single goal or posted a shutout. 

An all-around team-effort is a hallmark of this squad. Fifteen Bingham players registered goals on the year. Jessica Thomas paced the Miners with 13 goals, while Beckman and James had seven apiece.