The Vikings boys soccer team played La Conner on Tuesday, Oct. 14 and won that game 5-3, but fell to Mt. Vernon Christian on Friday 4-0.
Coach Matt Stolmeier said of the win against La Conner, “La Conner was struggling that day because of a variety of injuries that limited their roster. They had no substitutes, and one of their key seniors was out with a major knee injury. So they were hurting, but it allowed us to try new tactical schemes and different formations on the pitch.”
Fernando Arevalo, usually the goalie for Orcas, stood out playing the field in the La Conner game and had two assists and one goal. Coach Stolmeier commented, “He did a great job working the ball around the midfield; he’s a great set-up guy for goals. Barrett North also played his heart out. He’s a guy that puts everything into the game, and the rest of the team showed that they were capable of doing the same thing. One goal in particular was stunning and caught their defense off guard; Arevalo sent a header to Barrett North for a free kick and Barrett made short work of it, scoring a beautiful goal.”
North had two goals on Tuesday and Morgan Borman, a younger player for Orcas, was outstanding in the midfield. Coach Stolmeier reports, “The midfielders did a great job of going back to the defense and putting pressure on the ball early. These are a couple of our high-fitness guys, and they have the most endurance on the team, which is what you need in the midfield.”
During the Mt. Vernon game, the opposing team scored three of their goals in the first half of the game, but Coach Stolmeier was upbeat. “It was the best game the team has played all season; they put together some great passing combos and regardless of the early scores by Mt. Vernon, it was a fairly even match regarding offensive and defensive capability.
“The other team came out super aggressive and full of speed, but we played with great intensity as well. Our
midfield came out strong on that game; knocking the ball around and creating great opportunities for scoring, but we could not get that final touch into the net. We had a good showing from our substitutes; I gave them a specific job to pressure the ball to make their defense miss their passes and both Martin Winkler and Robin Gropp came in and pressured hard. Sam Parish as well had a phenomenal game, making runs to the outside and crossing the ball in. After it was over, the kids knew that they had played a great game.”
The Orcas boys soccer team plays Shoreline Christian in Seattle on Tuesday, Oct. 21 and La Conner on Friday Oct. 24 at home.
