CHS boys’ soccer won four out of its final five games at home, capping things by thumping La Conner Thursday night. (Julie Wheat photos)
They were in it to the very end.
A young Coupeville High School boys’ soccer squad, which had no 12th graders to honor on Senior Night, was still fighting for a playoff spot in the season finale, proof of the scrappiness of a new-look roster.
And while the Wolves just barely missed out on that postseason berth, it was through no fault of their own, as they ran visiting La Conner off the field Thursday night in a campaign-closing 4-1 win.
With the victory, its fourth in its last five games on the pitch at Mickey Clark Field, CHS finishes 3-5 in Northwest 2B/1B League play, 5-9 overall.
Defending state champ Orcas Island (8-0), Mount Vernon Christian (7-1), Friday Harbor (6-2), Lopez Island (5-3) and Providence Classical Christian (4-4) will rep District 1 in the playoffs.
Meanwhile, Cedar Park Christian-Lynnwood, Grace Academy, and La Conner finish in a logjam at 1-7 in league play, two games off of Coupeville.
Having finished his first season at the helm of the CHS boys’ pitch program, Wolf coach Jim Kunz sees a bright future for the booters.
Coupeville can return every player on its roster, with 12 of 15 players being sophomores, freshmen, or 8th graders.
“One of the biggest things for us was seeing the 8th graders step up and show they can play high school ball,” Kunz said. “We’ve got potential for our future years, and for building a really strong program.”
A growing number of Wolves have committed to playing select soccer and putting in off-season work, and while the team had no seniors, coaches used the opportunity to praise their three junior captains — Sage Arends, Solomon Rudat, and Sam Richards — for providing leadership to the young guns.
“Sage has been leading on and off the field,” Kunz said in pre-game comments.
“He’s a powerhouse on the field and spends personal time keeping teammates up to date on practices and games.
“Solomon is a graceful player on the field and has a knack for maintaining his temper and composure,” the coach added.
“Sam is an amazing goalie and vocally leads the team.”
It’s a war on the pitch.
While La Conner had little left to play for, the Braves put up a good fight in the first half Thursday, forcing the Wolves to scramble to reclaim the advantage.
Coupeville got on the board fairly early, as Edmund Wilson slapped a shot past the La Conner netminder less than three minutes into play.
Unfortunately, for the Wolves, they wouldn’t score again for nearly 40 minutes.
La Conner evened things at 1-1 thanks to a well-placed penalty kick, while Coupeville’s own chance to ring up a goal on a first-half PK slammed into the crossbar and bounced away.
Richards kept the game knotted up with several strong saves, including one in which he dove to spear a dangerous ball off the top of the grass, and the Wolves finally rediscovered their magic touch.
Arends slipped in the go-ahead goal in stoppage time, sending CHS into the break with a 2-1 lead, before Wilson came back around to punch in two more scores in the second half to net the hat trick.
With the late rush, Wilson finishes the season with eight goals, putting him one ahead of Arends in the race to lead the team.
With older bothers Aiden and Cael each scoring 13 times during their prep careers, the Wilson brothers have combined for 34 goals, second-most for one family in CHS boys’ soccer history.
Who are they chasing?
The Leyvas, as brothers Abraham (45 goals) and Aram (29) netted 74. Toss in Cousin Derek (38), and the number grows to an uncanny 112.
Arends also nabbed a bit of Wolf pitch history for himself, as his goal was the 10th of his high school career, making him the 14th CHS boy to crack double-digits.
Final season scoring stats:
Edmund Wilson – 8
Sage Arends – 7
Brian Thompson – 2
Edmund Kunz – 1
Liam Lawson – 1
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