By ALAN ZOLTIE

For The Beachcomber

Vashon took on Bellevue Christian in a must-win match at Marymoor Park on Oct. 20. After a slow start, the first half was a fairly even affair, with both sides having limited chances, and both goal keepers making one or two saves. The best of those came from Pirates’ keeper Katherine Andrus, who climbed high to pick off a ball that would have surely scored when Bellevue threatened from a direct free kick.

The Pirates dominated in the second half after the team seemed to wake up from its first half slumber. Within five minutes, top scorer Maren Fremstad gathered the ball midway inside the Bellevue half, took two strides, beat a defender and blasted an amazing 25-yard shot past the Bellevue keeper for a score of 1-0, and that was just the beginning. Ten minutes later, after some clever play by Camille de Guzman and a layoff to Bailey Ormsby, yet another rocket was sent past the stranded Viking keeper. Vashon was up 2-0, and the playoffs were beckoning.

With 15 minutes left on the clock, and after a dazzling run that beat three defenders, Mira Peterson sealed the victory with a fantastic 22-yard shot into the top right hand corner of the Vikings’ net. The game ended at 3-0, Vashon.

With results falling in its favor on Thursday evening when Charles Wright defeated Bellevue 2-0, Vashon cemented its playoff place with a guaranteed third-place finish, but the question was could they better that by defeating Cascade Christian on Saturday afternoon?

The Pirates entered the game looking to avenge the 2-0 defeat suffered at the hands of Cascade earlier in October. Vashon started strong and dominated the game from the kickoff, with Fremstad going close and Peterson running midfield like the general she has become. In the 24th minute, after a sublime pass from Peterson, Fremstad again stepped up to put the Pirates one goal ahead with an easy shot that beat the Cougars’ keeper. The game then settled into a very physical encounter with Vashon having VHS’ Maddie Browne yellow carded, along with two Cascade players.

The second half proved to be more of the same, and Vashon kept pushing with Fremstad taking frequent shots on the goal. In the end, the Pirates held out for a well-deserved win and now march into the playoffs on the back of four straight wins. The first playoff game will be on Saturday. As of press time, the opponent and venue were not yet known.

— Alan Zoltie is the VHS assistant soccer coach.