With the game on the line, the Mercer Island Islanders boys soccer team’s tenacious defense preserved a victory against the Sammamish Totems in a 3A/2A KingCo matchup on March 26.

The Islanders took an early 1-0 lead when Islanders senior forward Matthew Capone connected on a goal that found the back of the net in the 13th minute of play.

It would be the only goal either team would score for the remainder of the game.

In the final 20 minutes of regulation, the Totems offense had four solid shots on goal but couldn’t connect with the equalizer that would have tied the game. Mercer Island improved its overall record to 4-0-2 with the win while Sammamish dropped to 2-3 overall.

The Islanders formidable defense has surrendered just two goals in six contests during the 2019 season thus far.

“I thought our backline (defenders) just held strong like we’ve been doing all season. We’ve only conceded goals twice at this point. These guys just don’t like getting scored on,” Islanders head coach Forrest Marowitz said.

Capone said any victory in KingCo play is huge for the program.

“I don’t think there is any easy games in KingCo (division). Every team we see is a competitor. Our defense is amazing. I think we have the best defense in the league,” Capone said.

While Marowitz is impressed with his team’s dominance in early season play, he knows they can’t rest on their laurels.

“It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish. We just really want to take the lessons that we can from these games and just move on and try to get better every time. It all accumulates and we are climbing up the mountain,” he said.

Mercer Island sophomore midfielder Joshua Chang, right, puts pressure on a Totems player on March 26. Mercer Island’s stellar defense has surrendered just two goals in six games thus far this season. Photo courtesy of Patrick Krohn/Patrick Krohn Photography