Coupeville goalie Nick Guay (in green) is mobbed after the Wolves won a three-team tiebreaker Saturday, advancing to bi-districts. (Morgan White photos)
The Wolf booters live to play another day.
Beating the odds, and two rival teams, the Coupeville High School boys’ soccer team survived a three-team tiebreaker Saturday in Oak Harbor, emerging with a bi-district playoff berth to claim as its own.
Playing 40-minute “half games,” the Wolves knocked off Lopez Island 1-0, then nipped Providence Classical Christian 3-2 in a penalty kick shootout after finishing regulation in a scoreless tie.
That gives Coupeville the fifth, and final, playoff berth from District 1.
The Wolves, 5-8 on the season, now host Seattle-based Summit Atlas (3-1-1), the #4 team from District 2, in a loser-out playoff game.
That game will either be played Monday, Oct. 31 or Tuesday, Nov. 1 at a still-to-be-determined location.
Coupeville is the host team but is not allowed to play on its own home pitch as Mickey Clark Field does not have covered bleachers on both sides of the field.
The winner advances to play at Mount Vernon Christian (9-4-1), District 1’s #3 seed, in a loser-out, winner-to-state game which will most likely go down Nov. 2.
The eight-team 2B/1B state tourney runs between Nov. 11-19.
Coupeville’s boys’ soccer program, which launched in 2004, has made two prior trips to state, qualifying in 2009 and 2010 while being coached by former Seattle Sounders star Paul Mendes.
In modern times, CHS coach Robert Wood is the man calling the shots, though he was out of town on a business trip Saturday, with Wolf girls soccer guru Kyle Nelson filling his shoes.
Preston Epp wins the race to the ball.
The tiebreaker was forced when Coupeville, Lopez, and Providence all finished 3-5 in Northwest 2B/1B League play, trailing defending state champ Orcas Island (8-0), Friday Harbor (7-1), MVC (6-2) and Grace Academy (4-4).
Saturday’s event was to feature each of the three schools playing twice, but the Wolves made game three a moot point when they won games one and two.
Coupeville opened play at Oak Harbor’s Wildcat Memorial Stadium looking for some revenge against a Lopez squad which it lost to in the regular season.
Vying on a fast turf field after largely playing on natural grass, the two teams warily circled one another, looking in vain for a break in the defense.
Wolf goalie Nick Guay was on point all day, and he made several strong saves to preserve a scoreless tie heading into a short halftime break.
CHS had its scoring chances during the game’s first 20 minutes, but narrowly missed on several shots, with Reiley Araceley, Preston Epp, and Cole White each pushing the ball just wide of the net.
Coupeville’s big break came with a hair over nine minutes left in regulation, with senior team leader Aidan Wilson using his noggin to redirect a corner kick into the back of the net.
The Lopez goalie almost made the save but couldn’t control the madly spinning ball and it splashed home to the delight of a large pack of Wolf fans.
It was Wilson’s 10th goal of the 2022 campaign, and his 13th overall during his CHS days.
Aidan Wilson bangs home the game-winner against Lopez Island.
Trying desperately to find the tying goal, Lopez came hard after Guay, but he was unflappable, shutting the Lobos down with the aid of stout defenders like Hank Milnes, Andrew Williams, and Cameron Epp.
With the game one win in hand, the Wolves celebrated for about 1.3 seconds, then snapped their game faces right back on as PCC arrived on the pitch.
The Highlanders generated little heat on Guay, other than one long shot the Wolf netminder snagged on the fly, but Coupeville’s offense also sputtered a bit.
White had one primo opportunity in stoppage time in the second half, but the ball caught a gust of wind and sailed just over the bar, earning a sigh of relief from PCC supporters.
With 40 minutes run off the clock, and no goals to speak of, the teams jumped past the normal overtime period, instead settling things with a tense shootout.
Both Coupeville and PCC failed to convert on their first tries, but nailed opportunities #2 and #3.
Preston Epp and Guay, stepping out of goal for a moment, both popped balls into the left corner of the net, and things were knotted at 2-2.
The fourth shooters failed to crack the tie, with one blast blocked and the other banging off the bar on the right side of the net.
That set up things for a dramatic finish, and Wilson responded, launching a missile into the right corner to push CHS ahead 3-2.
Down to their final shooter, PCC needed a miracle, and its prayers went unanswered under cloudy skies.
Guay did some shake, a little bake, faked to the left, to the right, then celebrated as the Highlander booter slapped a shot to the left of the net, his team’s season vanishing as the ball drifted too far outside.
“On to the playoffs!”
Cue the celebration, followed by his teammates carrying Guay off the field, while Nelson smiled from the sideline.
A veteran of numerous big games, including those state playoff rumbles, the fill-in coach was happy to help keep the season going, while looking to hand the keys back to Wood.
“I just told them playoff games are always intense and tight,” Nelson said. “It was an exciting day and they stepped up. Will be fun to see them keep playing.”
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