Coach Ron Duke congratulates the team after they received the District First Place Trophy
Wolverines Hold Off MVC 2-1, Advance to State Final Eight
by Ian Byington
Friday Harbor won the District One top seed Saturday, beating second-finisher Mount Vernon Christian 2-1 in a shootout. The overtime victory sends the Wolverines (15-1-1) into action with Seattle Academy of the Arts & Sciences (SAAS) next week for a chance to win a spot in the school's second straight visit to the State Final Four.
On a cold, windy and rainy artificial turf field, FHHS traded attacks with the Hurricanes, outshooting them 12-4 in the first half. Friday Harbor started with a near-hit by senior forward Felipe Lopez off the right pole and a couple of chip shots that didn't drop by junior midfielder Mario Nunez (right), but weren't able to score until 26 minutes when Lopez turned a brilliant save by Mount Vernon Christian's junior keeper Normand Andrew into disaster for the Hurricanes. Nunez shot at Andrew from ten yards, and the keeper deftly palmed the ball away only to have it drop at Lopez's waiting left foot. The resulting score into the left corner of the net gave FHHS a 1-0 lead which stood for ten minutes before Hurricane midfielder Jimmy Collins found an open space in the center of the Wolverine defense to tie the game at the half, 1-1.
"It was hard to pass the way we're used to," conceded senior captain Eric Rothlisberger (right). "With the wind, and the wet field, the ball moved faster on the turf than we've seen all year. It's pretty different from grass."
The second half offered several near-goals, most notably a 37-yard free kick by defender Louis Paul that bounced back on the field after hitting the top left corner of the goal, a low shot that rang the bar on the right from sophomore forward Erik Nash, and a shot that grazed the top bar by Nunez. MVC was also unable to score, so the game went into overtime, where both teams fought to a draw.
The shootout saw the first nine players up to the spot score - senior midfielder Chris Benz, Nunez, Lopez, Rothlisberer, and senior defender Daniel Jones made their chances, while the MVC first four also scored. Then Hurricane defender Phillip deVries sliced his penalty shot into senior keeper Paul Guard's hands for the miss, and the game was over.
Hurricane midfielder Jonathon Hurd takes aim on FHHS goalkeeper Paul Guard in the shootout.
"Friday Harbor played well," said MVC coach Brian Adams afterwards. "We've made some changes on defense and in the midfield, and I think we showed we can keep up with them. It helped to score on them, and we were able to stay close the whole way."
It took a while for the Wolverines to adjust to the field and the weather conditions, according to FHHS head coach Ron Duke. "Once we settled in to understanding where the ball was going to go, we attacked better. We like to play with confidence, and getting this game under our belt is a good experience."
"We'll play better," promised Lopez, last year's league most valuable player, and a candidate to repeat this year. "We feel we're used to that field now, and it looks like we'll be back to play on it again for the next game. Don't worry - we'll do better."
The win carries the second-ranked Wolverines into a game with SAAS either Thursday or Saturday, with times to be determined on Monday. A win in that game returns FHHS to the State Final Four a week later.