Coupeville sophomore James Wood knocked in a gorgeous header Saturday, providing the game-busting goal in a 4-1 win over visiting Olympic. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)
James Wood will be denied once, maybe twice, but certainly not three times.
After barely missing on back-to-back golden scoring opportunities Saturday, the Coupeville High School sophomore hit pay dirt on set-up #3, and that was all the Wolves needed.
Sparked by Wood’s game-breaking header late in the first half, the CHS boys soccer squad busted open a tight game and rolled to a 4-1 non-conference win over visiting Olympic.
The opening-day victory, coming against a large 2A school, came in the first game played in front of Coupeville’s shiny new stadium.
With Peytin Vondrak on the announcer’s mic, a tasty cake prepared by local baker (and CHS cheer coach) Emily Stevens waiting to be cut, and the new stands jammed with boisterous fans, it was a fairly perfect opener for the Wolves.
Coupeville dominated play from beginning to finish, in a game which was closer to 10-1 than to being a nail-biter.
The Wolves, who tied with Olympic last year, came out aggressively this time around.
With the Leyva cousins, sophomores Aram and Derek, on the field together in CHS uniforms for the first time, things were electric from the opening tip.
Barely five minutes into the contest, Derek Leyva beat the defense on a run down the right side, popped the ball on to Aram Leyva’s leg and waited for the magic to happen.
For one of the few times all night, though, the Wolves were denied, as Aram’s shot went slightly off to the left, sliding right past an already-rattled Trojan goaltender.
And he had reason to fear, as the cousins pulled off virtually the same play in the game’s 19th minute, only this time Aram Leyva lured the goalie out of the net, then abused him 12 different ways while scoring the first goal of the season.
Olympic had few legitimate scoring opportunities, as a Wolf defense anchored by seniors Axel Partida and Hunter Downes was in lock-down mode, but the Trojans did get one ball past CHS goalie Dewitt Cole.
That knotted things up at 1-1 in the 26th minute, but it was also the last time the visitors looked like even a minor threat.
Cole was a vacuum cleaner the rest of the afternoon, popping high to pluck balls out of the sky, then dropping to his knees to snatch away errant balls.
With Coupeville’s defense unrelenting, its offense took charge.
Wood went over the top of the bar on a point-blank shot, then pushed one just right before finding his Moment of Zen.
Using his forehead to pluck a ball out of midair, he bashed a ball home in the game’s 32nd minute, giving CHS a lead it would never relinquish.
Up 2-1 at the half, the Wolves shredded Olympic’s soul in the second half.
Teo Keilwitz and Ethan Spark came up big on defense, blocking shots away from the mouth of their goal, while Derek Leyva put on a show on the opposite end of the field.
Playing in his first game as a Wolf, the sophomore netted two goals in an eight-minute span to put a stamp on things.
The first, in the 66th minute, came off of a penalty kick he drilled past the flailing goalie.
On the next, Derek Leyva reached up and plucked a ball sent half the length of the field air-mail-express-style by Spark, then slapped the ball into the back of the net.
Riding high off the opening-day win, the Wolves hit the road for their next three games, not returning to their new stadium until Mar. 24, when they host Klahowya.
