POST FALLS — Her teammates on the Timberlake High girls soccer team sang “Happy Birthday” to Emily Vanderhoof after Thursday’s 3A District 1 girls soccer championship game at Post Falls High.

Turns out, Vanderhoof had given herself a pretty good 18th birthday present about a half-hour earlier.

Vanderhoof scored the go-ahead goal midway through the second half, and top-seeded Timberlake went on to beat the second-seeded Coeur d’Alene Charter Academy Panthers 3-2 on a windy afternoon for the Tigers’ second straight district title.

With the score tied at 1, Vanderhoof took a pass from Georgina Simpson on the left wing, and drilled a left-footed shot into the net from about 15 yards out in the 55th minute.

“I kinda closed my eyes when it happened,” said Vanderhoof, who transferred from Lakeland last year. “I just stuck my foot out and it went in.”

Timberlake (16-0-1), which beat Charter in last year’s district title game, advances to state Oct. 22-24 in Caldwell. The Tigers open vs. District 4 champion Community School next Thursday at 10 a.m. PDT.

Coeur d’Alene Charter (12-5-1) plays the District 3 runnerup in a state play-in game Saturday in Moscow.

A stiff crosswind blew through much of the game, blowing more toward Timberlake’s goal in the first half, and toward Charter’s in the second.

Timberlake controlled most of the run of play in the first half. The Tigers took the lead in the 16th minute when sophomore Shelby Starr chased down a through ball and shot into the right corner of the net from 15 yards out.

“Good first half; I was pleased with what we were doing,” Timberlake coach Steve Michaels said. “Good possession, good decision making, executing was great. And then the second half, we came out flat and Charter came out charged up. I was kinda nervous there for 20 minutes or so. But we didn’t panic.”

Coeur d’Alene Charter threatened late in the first half, as junior Cecelia McAfee had three good scoring chances, only to get snuffed by Timberlake keeper Keelie Lawler each time.

The Panthers kept up the pressure early in the second half, and finally got the equalizer when McAfee beat Lawler with a shot low and to the keeper’s right to tie the game. A few minutes later, Lawler make a kick save on another shot by McAfee from about 12 yards out.

On the counter, Vanderhoof scored the go-ahead goal.

“I think when we scored our second goal, we got really excited, and picked up our energy and our intensity,” Starr said. “We had the momentum going for us the first half, and in the second half we kinda lost it. And then when we scored, we got it right back.”

Simpson made it 3-1 in the 75th minute, lofting a shot over Jensen from the left that glanced off the bottom of the crossbar and into the net.

“I thought Mother Nature certainly played a role, with that crosswind,” Coeur d’Alene Charter coach Dave Baxter said. “It certainly had a little bit of effect on the game. They came out fast, the way we expected them to. I felt that we had a good defensive plan. We made a mistake on the first goal, but other than that, I thought our defenders ran with them well, and were able to match that speed. Given the wind and how fast they were playing, and the intensity they had, I was thrilled that it was 1-0 at halftime.”

Sophomore Marie Michaelson’s penalty kick in the 79th minute pulled Charter within 3-2.

Charter won a play-in game last year to make it to state, then beat Timberlake in the state title game.

First half — 1, TL, Shelby Starr, 16:00. Second half — 2, Charter, Cecelia McAfee, 44:00. 3, TL, Emily Vanderhoof (Georgina Simpson), 60:00. 4, TL, Simpson, 74:00. 5, Charter, Marie Michalson (penalty kick), 79:00.

Shots on goal — Charter 8, TL 9.

Saves — Charter, Jackie Jensen 6; TL, Keelie Lawler 6.

ALL-INTERMOUNTAIN LEAGUE

Allison Kirby, jr., Timberlake (MVP); Kerstin Oxford, sr., Bonners Ferry; Kyla Trumble, sr., Timberlake; Natalie Goetz, jr., Coeur d’Alene Charter; Cecelia McAfee, jr., Coeur d’Alene Charter; Melissa Krampert, jr., Priest River; Avery Summers, jr., Priest River; Kara Steele, sr., Kellogg; Brooklyn Cunningham, jr., Coeur d’Alene Charter; Mariko White, sr., Kellogg; Tabitha Wilson, sr., Priest River; Alene Davenport, fr., St. Maries.

Coach of the Year: Brad Groce, St. Maries.