United wins Skagit soccer tournament

The Mercer Island United U12 Select soccer team beat Tracyton SC Impact ’96 in the Skagit Diadora Firecracker Tournament championship after it marched into the final undefeated in its first three matches.

The first half of the final was a gritty 30 minutes of crunching tackles, strong defense and smothering play from both sides. United showed some sparks of breaking the deadlock with Michael Drucker and Brett Bottomley, both getting chances to take the lead. But it was Stuart Toda who scored the initial goal of the contest during the second half, putting United up 1-0. However, the tide quickly turned and United found itself down 2-1 with only 20 minutes left in the game.

United stormed back as Bottomley and Drucker each scored to give United the lead with five minutes left, securing the championship for their team.

Over 200 teams, including the Mercer Island United, participated in the tournament, which was played on 18 fields. United’s first opponent was the South Whidbey Revolution FC. Goals from Drucker and Richard Counihan gave MI United the 2-0 win.

The second game saw United fall behind 1-0 midway through the first half. During the first 20 minutes, several United players peppered shots toward the goal of their opponent, the Chinook Fire. Desperate defense kept United from tying the game, but with 15 minutes to go, Drucker broke free from the defense and scored the equalizer. The team was resigning itself to a well-earned draw when a pass from the midfield reached a sprinting Griffin Tiedy, who scored the game-winning goal by breaking free behind the defense on the right wing.

United played Tracyton SC Impact ’96 for the first time on Sunday morning. United’s Brett Bottomley scored the game-winner and only goal after dribbling to the top left corner of the box, cutting back and shooting the ball into the top right-hand corner of the net. The Impact responded as United players found themselves on their heels defending the goal line in desperate fashion. An excellent reflex save from goalie Charlie Williams prevented a goal and secured the victory.

Islanders take second at Skagit tournament

The newly formed girls’ U12 MIFC Islanders were the runners-up at the same tournament held on June 20-22.

The Islanders nearly beat the Issaquah Arsenal Blue in the final, but a clutch save from an Islander penalty kick preserved a 1-1 tie and enabled Arsenal to win the championship match 2-1. Early in the second half, Arsenal was called for a handball in the penalty box. Despite a quality shot, the Arsenal goalie made the save to preserve the tie. With about 10 minutes left in the game, Arsenal found the back of the net a second time for the game-winner.

Arsenal scored first in the final match, midway through the first half. The Islanders answered with just seconds left in the half when Megan Diamond tapped in a rebound goal after a shot by Joelle Antilla was stopped by the Arsenal goalie.

The Islanders qualified for the title game after a 1-1 tie with the defending champion Evergreen Premier ’96 White. The Islanders’ goal was by Antilla with the assist delivered by Diamond.

The Islanders opened the tournament on the right foot with a hard-fought 2-1 win over the Crossfire Premier ’96 Red team. Katherine Vetter scored both Islander goals with assists from Diamond and Catherine Seifert.

In another game, the Islanders shut out NW United with an outcome that was never in doubt. The Islanders scored twice in the first half and four times after the intermission for a easy 6-0 win. Antilla had four goals, and Kelly Devine and Katie Kepler one each. Vetter had two assists and Diamond had one.

Mets win Mercer Island Little League AAA Championship

The Mercer Island Mets beat the Astros 6-4 in the Mercer Island AAA Little League Playoff Championship on May 28, despite starting the season 0-6. The Mets took an early 1-0 lead with Alex Brown hitting a lead-off double and Trenton Nield sending him home with a sharp single to third base.

In the bottom of the first, with runners on second and third, Ramsey Attisha grabbed a line drive to end the inning and keep the Astros off the board. The score would remain 1-0 until the Astros tied it up in the bottom of the third with Noah Geisman scoring off a Drake Willard single. Mets’ catcher Steven Duchaine caught the go-ahead runner on third leading off.

The Mets’ found their swing during the fourth inning as Trenton Nield advanced to third on a Thomas Krause double and both players scored on a Steven Duchaine triple. Duchaine quickly followed them home on a BJ Briggs’ sacrifice RBI.

The Mets defense continued to shine with Nield recording his eighth strikeout of the game and shortstop Joey Gluck grabbing a sharp line-drive for the third out of the inning.

Attisha singled to lead off the fifth and was followed by a double from Joshua Park. Attisha scored on Will Krause’s double. Isaac Byun sent Park home with a double, his third hit of the night.

The Astros struck back in the bottom of the fifth, with Zach Evens starting off with a double and Nick Schlamp picking up the RBI. The Astros added two more runs from a Daichi Momma double before the inning was over.