Two weeks into the season, the Vashon Pirates boys soccer team is undefeated — but two hard-fought draws in their last two matches show there are still some kinks to work out.

As intended, Vashon met stiff competition in their first three games this season, which they dealt with about as well as head coach John Thomas could have hoped, considering the season is still very young.

The Pirates first met the Bush School Blazers, anticipated to be a difficult matchup due to Bush’s legacy in the challenging Emerald Sound 1A conference and their success last season.

Bush was expected to be an experienced team that would test the Pirates — however, they were anything but. The Pirates thrashed a lackluster Bush in a lopsided 6-2 match.

The Blazers were the architects of their own demise in the first half, as poor defending and an inability to control the ball in the midfield saw the Pirates up 2-0 up after only 10 minutes — both goals being scored by Pirates forward Mason Haynes.

Bush dragged a goal back midway through the first half through a strong finish by Senior Xavi Dellisanti. Still, poor coverage off a corner kick let the Pirates’ midfielder Avery MacLean fire one home alongside another from forward Rowan Marceau-Roache, sending the Pirates into halftime up 4-1.

The second half was not quite as easy for Vashon, but two more from Mason Haynes secured the win and his place as Man of the Match, with a staggering four goals.

The Pirates had little time to celebrate this victory as, just two days later, they hosted the 3A Ballard Beavers.

Whereas the attack shined for the Pirates against Bush, the defense stepped up versus Ballard. The game was a midfield scrap, and part of Vashon’s inability to make anything happen offensively was due to Mason Haynes leaving the field after 20 minutes with a hand injury — he did not return until late in the game. Ballard did have some chances, but they were shut down by Pirate defensive mainstay Gavin Keenan, alongside his center-back partner and Man of the Match Caeden Miller, who was calm and composed both on and off the ball for the match’s entirety.

After nearly two halves of a physical game, the score remained 0-0 until Ballard was awarded a penalty kick after Vashon goalkeeper Jeff Nelson took down Beavers forward Beckett Jacobson in the 18-yard box.

Henry Peters converted the spot kick to seemingly win the game for Ballard. But with only seconds to go, Isaac Newcomb took a dive in the box and won Vashon a penalty and a chance to come away with a draw.

The Pirates’ top goal scorer last season, Joni Respighi, stepped up to take it, and although his first effort was saved, he put away the rebound to end the match at 1-1.

Nearly a week later, Vashon and their third opponent, the University Prep Pumas, both came into the next match dealing with illness. For the Pirates, it meant that Avery MacLean and Caeden Miller would be limited, and Joni Respighi would miss the majority of the game with a calf injury.

The Pumas were also missing a couple of their key players, but that didn’t stop them from taking a shock lead only two minutes in, capitalizing on defensive confusion from the Pirates on a corner kick.

U Prep maintained constant pressure on the Pirates for the next 20 minutes, cutting off Vashon’s passing lanes in the midfield and preventing them from creating anything offensively. Despite the Pumas’ dominance, Mason Haynes intercepted a poor pass from U Prep center-back Luca Frank, took it around the keeper, and scored to give Vashon a lifeline.

Ten minutes later, the Pirates’ corner kick woes continued as Roan Leslie scored an Olimpico (a goal straight from a corner kick) to give the Pumas a 2-1 lead going into halftime.

Vashon was able to turn things around in the second half with a dominant midfield performance by Quill Tegenfeldt-Pfohman. Even with renewed energy, it took Vashon until the final five minutes to score, as Pirate sophomore Ryland Knodt put in a cross that was tucked home by Tegenfeldt-Pfohman to cap off what was already a Man of the Match performance and give the Pirates a well earned 2-2 draw.

Vashon looks ahead to a much easier schedule in the upcoming two weeks, playing only two matches — both at Pirates Stadium. The first is against Nisqually 1A rivals Klahowya, who shocked Cascade Christian last year in the district tournament semi-final to earn a spot in the state tournament.

Two days later, the Pirates face the East Jefferson Rivals, who finished last season 4-10-3 overall. Vashon played and beat the rivals Rivals twice last year, 6-0 and 8-1, meaning that this game is not likely to provide much of a challenge, and Pirates fans can expect many changes to the lineup from coach Thomas.

The week after brings spring break — a chance to rest and prepare for tougher fixtures down the road.

Oscar Lopez is an island sportswriter, a senior at Vashon High School and a Voice of Vashon commentator for the island’s soccer teams.

Pirate Schedule Snapshot

• Tuesday, March 25: Home vs. Klahowya. JV at 3:30, Varsity at 5:15 p.m.

•Thursday, March 27: Home vs. East Jefferson JV at 3:30, Varsity at 5:15 p.m.

The full schedule can be found at govashonpirates.com/teams/4541251/boys/soccer/varsity/schedule.

All matches are broadcast on voiceofvashon.org.