By Ben Bork
For The Beachcomber
Vashon High School boys’ soccer season officially got underway last week. The varsity players arrived at the first match, at Eatonville High School, late due to a longer than expected travel time. There was no warm-up time and with only one substitute, the players spent the first 25 minutes of the game warming up. After the team shook off the rusty habit of poor passes and finally got a handle on control of the ball, Pirate midfielder Anthony Gateman opened up the season with a goal. He would double his tally with another goal before Bohdin Mozeleski and Austyn Heit decided they would have a go. Both found the net with the final score ending in a 4-1 win.
Pre-season fitness training was a clear indicator for the win. By the time the final whistle blew, varsity players could have run another game. As usual, there was a solid performance by senior goalie Ben Stemer. Freshmen Christian White and Kieran Enzian also showed nice promise for the future.
Later that week the Pirates traveled to King’s High School. King’s placed third in state last year. The game started quickly and aggressively. It became quickly obvious that all of the Knights were very fast and physically tough. In the fifth minute on a chipped ball over the defense, senior Vashon defensive back Dan Green drew a red card and was ejected from the game for a penalty of deliberating fouling an opponent in an obvious goal scoring opportunity. The ensuing penalty kick resulted in a 1-0 start to the match. The game was played for an additional 75 minutes with Vashon playing a man down. The final whistle blew, and the ending result was a 5-0 win for the Knights.
Even though the defeat was difficult, Pirate players are good to remember that playing 11 versus 10 for an entire match is not an easy task. The level of play that the varsity squad was challenged to will undoubtedly raise its standard of competition in future games. The team had its first home game Tuesday, after press time, against Charles Wright Academy.
— Ben Bork is the VHS boys soccer coach.
