Jenn Spark delivers a thunderous kick earlier in the season. (John Fisken photo)
This is the way the season ends, not with a whimper, but a proud scream of joy.
Capping a nine-game unbeaten run, the Whidbey Islanders GU18 select soccer squad fought to a 0-0 tie against a very talented Pacific Sound United team in Everett Saturday.
The 7-0-2 finish left the team, which brought together booters from Coupeville, Oak Harbor and South Whidbey, with a sterling 8-2-2 record.
The only two losses came early in the season to what proved to be the top two teams in the league.
The Islanders will now have two months off, with tryouts for the next team in mid-May.
Whidbey will lose two high school seniors — Oak Harbor’s Selena Medina and Coupeville’s Tori Wellman — but could return almost its entire roster if things work out.
The current team played with a collective fire all season, making its name with a stingy defense and a high-flying offense.
And while that offense couldn’t get one into the back of the net Saturday, the defense more than held its own.
With starting goaltender Kenzie Perry off on vacation, Morgan Zylstra slid into net and recorded her first complete game shutout of the season. Helping her out was the back wall that refuses to give an inch.
“Our back four — Alyssa Cross, Jacki Ginnings, Jenn Spark and Paige Waterman — proved, again, to be the best in the league,” said Islander coach Sean LeVine.
The Islanders came hard in the second half, flooding the Everett side of the field. Jacalyn Hefflefinger, Bailey Olson, Becca Pabona and Medina ripped off shots on goal, but the net gods were not of a giving nature in the end.
Still, keeping the unbeaten streak alive for the final 75% of the season is something for the entire team to be proud of accomplishing.
“You are my favorite sports team on the planet!,” LeVine told his team. “I enjoyed this season more than any other!
“We improved, had fun, and had you seen by colleges,” he added. “That is a successful season!”
Coupeville Sports 