Varsity - BHS vs Skyline 9-23-25

Bellevue 2-1 Skyline

3rd min Skyline goal from corner
65th min Skyline red card
70th min 1-1 Saleen (Elina)
78th min 2-1 Saleen (Paris)

Last summer, I read an article about Russ "Hardest Geezer" Cook, an Englishman who is the first person to run the length of Africa, almost 10,000 miles over 352 days. I'm always drawn in by these seemingly absurd pursuits of endurance, bravery, and extreme looniness (and isn't all sport this, if we boil it down it its essense...🙂). But the lesson and laugh that stuck with me after reading about it was this quote by Cook in the Guardian: 

During Cook's feat he ran through rainforests, across mountain ranges, and traversed the Sahara. On day 200, he reduced his daily mileage on doctors' advice in Nigeria. "“I took a couple of days to get some scans. No bone damage so figured the only option left was to stop mincing about like a little weasel...and zombie stomp road again." 

Uh, ok. Russ.

Am I about to compare running 10k miles through rainforests and deserts to girls high school soccer? Yes. Yes I am. Because being tired, hurting, sore, and mentally exhausted is part of anything worth pursuing, and the payoffs of joy, camaraderie, accomplishment, and character growth all grow from the seeds of hard work and perseverance. And an unshakable spirit of positivity. 

And so we traveled to Skyline, home of the 7-time 4A State Champions, for our second Kingco league game of the year. Similar to our program, Skyline had a big graduating class last season, but also like Bellevue, their program is also deep and talented. They were unbeaten in their previous five games this season and had mostly cruised to multiple-goal wins. They are well-coached, organized, physical, athletic, and excellent at set-pieces. A year ago, we entered Spartan Stadium confident and ready to play...and were 0-3 down after less than 15 minutes. So my final words during pre-game were about beginning the game with focus and "locking-in" mentally for the inevitable press of the first few minutes. Well, that didn't work. After 3 minutes, Skyline earned a corner and scored a beautifully worked header, flicked expertly to the far post. In rewatching the video, yes, we got on the wrong side of some Skyline runs in our marking assignments, but it was a quality goal scored by a quality team. Hat tip. It happens. But Deja Vu, in the first three minutes. Sigh. 

And for the next 25 minutes, Skyline pressed hard to add to their lead and secure an early coup de grace. Mostly one-way traffic in our defensive third. Against good opposition, there will be times in a game when you need to weather a storm of pressure. Every player gets energized by postitive forward looking ball-control sparkling soccer...but when the other team has you pinned, it's just hard work, discipline, and perseverance. The rewards are in the little things: blocked shots. poking the ball away during a dangerous dribble into a dangerous area...challenging for headers even if you don't win it...and most importantly, a goalkeeper who put on her magic ball-stopper gloves for this game. Katelyn was outstanding throughout, but we really needed her to weather the early Skyline storm, and she stepped-up. Punched crosses, diving finger-tip saves, calm distribution. A confident goalkeeper makes an entire defense more confident. A second Skyline goal early in the game would've been very difficult to overcome. But we held steady. We endured. And the momentum began to shift. Slowly at first, but then all at once. We began to earn corners. We began to switch play and attack their fullbacks at pace. By halftime it was still 0-1 to the home team, but it was clear in our huddle that we knew we were in the game. We were down on the scoreboard, but certainly not out. 40 more minutes. Anything can happen in 40 minutes.

From watching video in preparation, one area in which we thought we could catch Skyline out was in quick transitions and counter-attacks. Skyline is so eager to press and get forward that they sometimes leave gaps at the back if you can counter quickly enough. And so at practice this week, we worked on transitions and finishing breakaways. Not boot ball tactics...but a more direct opportunistic pass to feet in dangerous areas where we could bypass their organized midfield. This is foreshadowing.

We maintained the momentum we had at the end of the first half and continued to create excellent chances while mostly stifling the Skyline attack. And then the game changed in the 65th minute. Ava won the ball at midfield with a strong challenge and immediately released Saleen in space on the left. Quick transition. Simple ball into space. And Saleen had only one defender to beat running full speed at goal. Breakaway.

The defender had a split-second choice to make: attempt a tackle before Saleen got into the box or risk a penalty or 1v1 with her keeper if she waited a moment too long. She took the risk of an early tackle and fouled Saleen at the top of the box. Hard. DOGSO (soccer rule that stands for "Denial of Obvious Goal Scoring Opportunity") and an immediate justified red card. I briefly lost my temper (which I'm not proud of) as I saw Saleen in pain at the top of the box from the challenge, but once I regained my sense of reason, it wasn't a dirty play. Just a hard foul. I don't believe the Skyline defender was trying to hurt anyone, it's just part of our game, and it could be argued that it was a very reasonable soccer choice (trading a red card, and a free kick from outside the box, and a one-player disadvantage with less than 15 minutes left in a tight game versus a 1v1 on goal or penalty kick is a trade-off that many coaches would gladly accept). But it did dramatically change the game.

Because five minutes later, we had our equalizer. It began with great defense, as Emerson (who was an unshakeable granite rock cornerstone of our backline all night) chased down the Skyline winger, won the ball, and kept possession when many defenders might have conservatively kicked the ball out of bounds, and then switched play to a wide-open Elina on the right side. Elina's first touch was into the space in front of her, and her second was a direct, lovely, perfect diagonal ball over the Skyline defense, where only Saleen could get it. This time, there was no foul at the top of the box, as Saleen shoulder-dropped the last defender and calmly deposited the ball into the net at the near post. 1-1 in the 70th minute. 

And then the real drama happened. With less than two minutes in regulation, Paris one-touched a volley from a Skyline goal kick to Saleen's feet. Quick transition. Simple, but direct pass from Paris. Saleen took a single touch to the inside and launched a 30 yard rocket into the Skyline net before the defense could re-organize. 2-1 Bellevue. Second game in a row with a dramatic late goal to change the outcome of the contest. Jubilation. Celebration. And a full three points earned at Spartan Stadium, a very rare occurrence. Final statistics: 16/3 vs. 13/4 shots/corners Bellevue/Skyline. Essentially even in creating chances across the game. We did enjoy a 55% possession advantage, but again, possession doesn't always translate to creating good chances. Both teams created good chances. The game was a see-saw, with the final outcome decided by a few late moments: red card, quick transitions, and a wondergoal at the end.  

And now we move on to host one of only two remaining 3A Kingco teams in our league schedule: Inglemoor. Since Kingco playoff seeding is done by classification, getting results against Inglemoor and Liberty takes on extra significance (a classic "six-pointer" as they would declare in the EPL: earning three points while denying three points to a rival = "six-pointer"). After a hard-fought win against Skyline, our legs and bodies will likely be sore, tired, with aches and pains. And we have to go again less than 48 hours later. So to quote the Hardest Geezer, 

"... so [I] figured the only option left was to stop mincing about like a little weasel...and zombie stomp road again."    

To be fair, this team has never minced about. It's a tough group. 

We'll be ready to zombie stomp again on Thursday. 

Peter

Final Notes:
Thank you for the support at Skyline. The enthusiasm for this team from the stands is very energizing for our girls. Just remember to keep referee criticism at a low boil. Overall, IMO the center last night was very good, yes, he made a few calls I disagreed with, but he got all of the big calls right and kept the game in control and free-flowing. Crowd participation: Loud? yes. Enthusiastic? yes. Supportive? always. Funny? sure, why not? Directly critical or personal to ref? please no, referee management is my job.

Air quality was an issue at Skyline. At JV kick-off the AQI hovered just below a cancellation. ADs from both schools were in direct communication and closely monitored the situation. By the varsity game, the cool evening air and slight breeze had improved conditions. But it's a good reminder to always remember inhalers if you need them. Also, we increased our substitution rotation pattern in the first half against Skyline to give lungs a break. Smoke season is a thing. We'll take it seriously.

Jeez, these are getting longer. thank you for making it to the end if you did....