Winning its first playoff match since 2010, the Coupeville High School soccer team blanked Bellevue Christian 3-0 in the first round of the District 3 tournament Saturday, May 5, at Wildcat Memorial Stadium in Oak Harbor.
The Wolves now advance to the four-team, double-elimination portion of the tournament and face Nisqually League champion Vashon Island at 6 p.m. Tuesday, May 8, at Mount Tahoma High School in Tacoma. The tournament continues May 10 and 12 at Orting High School. The top two teams earn berths in the state tournament.
The Wolves will need to win two of three to move on.
Vashon Island (12-1-3) defeated Coupeville 3-1 in a non-league match April 2.
Coupeville 3, Bellevue Christian 0
Coach Kyle Nelson said the key to the win was that his club “played together.”
“We brought good energy and supported each other,” he added.
Coupeville’s superior ball handing, passing and speed helped the Wolves dominate possession in the first half and out-shoot the Vikings 12-5.
“This is a bigger field, and we tried to use the space,” Nelson said. “We are kind of a fast break team, so we tried to use that to our advantage.”
Thirteen minutes into the match, Hunter Downes used his head to drive the ball up field for Coupeville. Derek Leyva then delivered a pretty cross to the far post and Sam Wynn rammed it home for a 1-0 lead.
Just past the midway point of the first half, William Nelson split the defense and fired a 15-yard shot from straight on to make it 2-0.
BC had the wind at its back in the second half and cut into Coupeville’s dominant time of possession but couldn’t convert.
The turning point, according to coach Nelson, came at the 24-minute mark.
Coupeville keeper Dewitt Cole made a diving save of a Bellevue Christian rocket shot, then 45 seconds later Aram Leyva, with an assist from Derek Leyva, slammed home another Coupeville goal.
Had Cole not stopped the BC shot, the Vikings would have had the momentum, Nelson said, and cut the lead to one.
Instead, the Wolves countered with a goal that all but wrapped up the match.
“That really turned the tide,” Nelson said.
The win lifted Coupeville’s season record to 7-7-2. The Vikings fell to 9-6.
Axel Partida uses his head to help Coupeville. (Photo by John Fisken)
Keeper Dewitt Cole scoops up the ball for the Wolves. (Photo by John Fisken)
The Coupeville crowd responds to a Wolves’ goal. (Photo by John Fisken)
William Nelson goes on the attack for Coupeville. (Photo by John Fisken)
Coupeville’s Sam Wynn runs down a loose ball. (Photo by John Fisken)
