COLLEGE SOCCER: Peninsula men take over first place; women survive Whatcom
Published 12:01 am Friday, September 25, 2015
PORT ANGELES — The Peninsula College men’s soccer team took over sole possession of first place in the Northwest Athletic Conference North Division with a 3-0 win over Whatcom at Wally Sigmar Field.
The Pirate women, meanwhile, remained a game back of Everett with a 1-0 win over Whatcom on Wednesday.
The Peninsula men put pressure on the Orcas early with two shots on goal in the opening minutes.
Another shot in the fourth minute found its mark when Eddie Benito crossed the ball deep in the box back to C.J. Harvey, who scored for the quick 1-0 lead.
That score stood up for 66 minutes of hotly contested soccer between two teams tied for the division lead. Johnny Martinez scored an insurance goal in the 70th minute off an assist from Harvey to give the Pirates some breathing room.
The final goal came when Trevan Estrellado found Harvey on a through-pass, and the freshman from Kapolei, Hawaii, flew past tired Whatcom defenders up the left side and then squeezed a shot between goalkeeper Hector Gutierrez and the left post to put the match away in the 90th minute.
It was Harvey’s second goal of the match, and the second of his collegiate soccer career.
The Pirates outshot Whatcom 13-2.
Peninsula goalkeeper Nick Johnson finished with two saves for his conference-leading fourth shutout of the season.
The Pirates, currently ranked second in the Alaska Airlines NWAC Coaches’ Poll, improve to 3-0-1 in conference play and 5-1-2 overall.
The Orcas fell to 2-1-1 and 3-2-1.
Women’s Match
Peninsula 1, Whatcom 0
On paper, the Pirates, ranked No. 1 in the NWAC, were heavily favored to beat up on Whatcom on Wednesday.
But the Orcas ripped up that paper into little pieces, withstanding Peninsula’s offensive onslaught for most of 90 minutes.
The Pirates controlled the match from start to finish but struggled to find the net against defensive-minded Whatcom.
The Pirates outshot the Orcas 23-6, getting four shots from the NWAC’s leading scorer Lexi Krieger, four from Ellie Small, three from Michele Whan, and two each from Kennady Whitehead, Paige Mahuka and Olivia Moore, but only one of those shots went found the Whatcom goal — and it was perhaps the most unlikely.
In the 17th minute of the second half, Whan curled a corner kick over the outstretched arms of Whatcom goalkeeper Hannah Fisher and into the far corner of the net for what ended up being the only goal of the match.
Manaia Siania-Unutoa recorded her NWAC-leading sixth shutout of the season with four saves, and the Pirates continued an astonishing onslaught of the NWAC with 35 goals scored this season and only one allowed. They lead the conference in both categories.
Peninsula improves to 3-1 in conference play and 8-1 overall, while the Orcas fell to 1-3 and 2-4. Everett leads the North with a 4-0 conference record (6-1-1 overall).
Upcoming matches
The Peninsula teams make a pair of road trips before returning home next Saturday, Oct. 3, for their White Out games against Everett.
The Peninsula Athletic Department, sponsored by the Associated Student Government, will be dispersing white “Pirate Proud” T-shirts.
But first, the Pirates play at Edmonds on Saturday and at Shoreline on Wednesday.
