Pirates soccer team undefeated so far

They have three wins and one tie after just one week of play.

By Lauri Hennessey • March 20, 2019 1:30 am
Jakob Heuschert, number 11 in the white shirt, vies for the ball in the match against Steilacoom. Pirate Fredi Gutierrez, number 8, is nearby (Rosie Eades Photo).
Jakob Heuschert, number 11 in the white shirt, vies for the ball in the match against Steilacoom. Pirate Fredi Gutierrez, number 8, is nearby (Rosie Eades Photo).

The Vashon boys’ soccer team has blasted off in the new season. After just one week of play, the Pirates have three wins and one tie, playing against teams that are above their division.

The boys played Overlake, last year’s State champs, on Saturday, March 9, and came out with a 1-1 tie. They played Kings on Monday, March 11, in a 2-0 win; beat Steilacoom, 2-1, on Thursday, March 14, and they beat South Kitsap, 1-0, on Saturday, March 16. They were scheduled to play their first district game on Tuesday of this week, after press time, on the road against Cascade Christian.

Based on the tight scores of the four games under their belts, the Pirates so far are playing evenly matched teams. The teams they beat are from much larger schools, however. South Kitsap has almost 2,000 students, compared to Vashon’s much smaller 600.

Stand-outs of the season so far have included freshman player Bellamy Cox-Sitkiewicz, sophomore Jakob Heuschert, junior goalie/defender Richard Rivas-Guttierez and junior Jeremiah Bogaard, along with strong seniors Elliot Eades and Finley Oswald (Eades and Oswald both won district honors last year).

Much of the success of the team rests on Tommy Delargy, a senior who played premier soccer for years, in addition to basketball. Of the six goals scored so far by the Pirates, five have been by Delargy, who was the lead goal scorer for the league last year. The sixth was by Heuschert against Steilacoom.

The Steilacoom game last week was especially challenging, with some poor sportsmanship from the other team and an array of Pirate injuries.

In two games last week, sturdy goalie Rivas-Guttierez played defense instead, giving JV goalie Marley Kott a chance to play and bringing Rotary Exchange student/new goalie Pablo Alonso into goal for the JV. As the Pirates begin league play, it is unclear if Rivas will go back into goal.

The Pirates come off a remarkable 2018 season with 14 wins, two losses and three ties. They were the Nisqually League Champions and District III Champions last year, although they lost in the first round of the play-offs.

This week’s schedule includes Cascade Christian away on Tuesday night (first league game), Seattle Christian at home at 6 p.m. Thursday and Charles Wright at home on Monday, March 25. The homegames are broadcast on Voice of Vashon.

— Lauri Hennessey is the mother of a Pirate soccer player.