Positions on soccer team up for grabs
March 12, 2009
By Ryan Piersol
If soccer fans enjoyed watching Mount Si’s season of ties a year ago, then they should check out a Wildcat practice this spring — because there seems to be a tie on the depth chart at just about every position.
A year after going 4-8-4, Mount Si enters the season with one of the youngest squads it has fielded under head coach Darren Brown. Because of that, many positions are up for grabs.
“After a couple, all of the rest of my positions are wide open,” said Brown, who enters his sixth season at the boys helm. “I think, the first three games, I’m going to give all of them a lot of playing time, because I want to see who can fit in the formation that we’re playing.”
The Wildcats begin the season at 6 p.m. March 14 against Issaquah. Their first league match isn’t until they host Bellevue on March 27.
Mount Si graduated 10 players off last year’s team, leaving it with just three seniors this spring. The good news is that all of the seniors are expected to contribute.
The leader of the entire team could be goal keeper Cody Tipton, who is entering his fourth straight season as a starter in the net. He was a second-team All-KingCo performer a year ago.
“He’s very experienced. He has 45-plus games under his belt. And that’s a lot for playoffs and league games,” Brown said. “He’s seen everything in the league and knows a lot of player weaknesses and strengths. It’s just going to matter how the defense responds to his leadership in the back.”
Mount Si’s other two seniors are defender Alex Bolves and forward A.J. Leland.
The lone starter on defense is Sam Evans. Only a sophomore, Eric Baumgardner is a returning starter at center midfielder. The Wildcats also have a returning starter up top in Doug Silvius, who could be the offense’s go-to guy after scoring three goals last season.
“We’re young,” Brown said. “We have a lot of new faces and are kind of retooling the team this year. So, it’s going to be a roller-coaster.”
Comments
Got something to say?
Before you comment, please note:
- These comments are moderated.
- Comments should be relevant to the topic at hand and contribute to its discussion.
- Personal attacks and/or excessive profanity will not be tolerated and such comments will not be approved.
- This is not your personal chat room or forum, so please stay on topic.
