Gig Harbor girls soccer off to hot start, eyeing 3A SSC title

Remember what the world was like three years ago in 2018? There was no worldwide COVID-19 pandemic, DK Metcalf had yet to grace the hearts of Seahawks fans and University of Washington running back Myles Gaskin single-handedly gashed any hopes the Washington State Cougars had for a Pac-12 north title in the Apple Cup.

Three years have now passed, and it seems like it was in a blink of an eye. The year 2018 was the last time the Gig Harbor High School girls soccer team won the 3A state championship. It was the freshman players then who are the senior leaders now on this current version of the Tides’ soccer team.

Players like Ella Hatteberg, Shelby Stordahl, and the game-winning goal scorer from that 2018 squad Ashley Wright, are playing their final season for the Tides. Lily Paulson, a first-team selection in the 4A SPSL last spring and a key goal scorer for Gig Harbor, was one of the 2018 state championship team’s top players as a freshman. She returns for her senior year, after being named to The News Tribune’s All-Area team last spring, scoring three goals and nine assists for the Tides, which advanced to the league title crossover match against Puyallup. Hatteberg was also named to the All-Area first-team last spring; Huber and Wright were second-team selections.

After a year of playing up in the 4A South Puget Sound League, they feel ready for league rivals like Peninsula and Central Kitsap in the 3A South Sound Conference.

Alerady, Gig Harbor has won its first two games of the season, beating 4A Union 1-0 and 3A SSC foe Yelm, 5-0.

“We’ve had a great summer. We are seeing a lot of incoming players, so our numbers are huge right now. It’s just nice to actually get us back on the pitch together and start making connections,” said head coach Katie Bennett. “I think we will be strong again; we have some great senior leadership. We have a lot of returners and the cohesion that we are making is awesome.”

The Tides are starting to gel together on the pitch. The players are developing communication skills with each other and getting used to the pace of play Bennett wants her team to compete at.

Last season, the Tides began the year on a hot streak by winning their first eight games of the season. Although they dropped the last two games to Peninsula and Sumner, Gig Harbor still finished 8-2 on the year. To boot, they averaged about 2.9 goals per game and allowed only 0.6 goals per game as well.

This year being a different season though, there are questions that the Tides are trying to find the answers to. Perhaps the biggest question Bennett is trying to figure out is who will step up to fill the absence of junior Sam Huber and be that lead goal scorer the Tides will need in the season.

“We’re still looking for our goal scorers, we still have [Huber] out. She suffered an ACL injury against Bellarmine, so she is out on the mends,” she said. “She will potentially join us at the end of the season, but we don’t really know yet.”

One such option for lead goal scorer would be senior forward Ashley Wright. Wright has had lots of goal-scoring opportunities in her tenure at Gig Harbor, of which she has capitalized. Some of those moments, of course, were in the most clutch of situations.

Wright can be effective in wherever Bennett puts her as well, as she can and will shift over to midfield when she needs to. From those spots, lots of action will flow through Wright on the pitch.

She also has such a natural affinity for playing at a high, competitive level of soccer as well. In all three years that she has been eligible, Wright has made the all-league teams for the 3A SSC and 4A SPSL. But what will make her successful on the field is the comfort level that she feels with her teammates.

“On the field, my focus is that I don’t really think too much because I am an overthinker. So, it’s easy for me to get in my own head,” Wright said. “Basically, on the field, I just try to not think if I make a mistake and I try to brush it off. I have my teammates to encourage to me and never feel down about it. I don’t think and play, I go out there and have fun.”

Another player that is expecting to have a strong year is senior midfielder Ella Hatteberg. She is another option to be one of the top goal scorers for the Tides, but not for overpowering defenders on the opposite side of the ball.

However, what really sets Hatteberg apart from other midfielders is that she is naturally a defender since that is the position she plays on her club team. Armed with the knowledge of how defenders read approaching players, Hatteberg can make moves down the field to outsmart the opponent ahead of her.

Playing out of her comfort zone not only makes Hatteberg a well-rounded player but an important asset to the Tides during the season.

“In club, I play defender. It is definitely a change, and I like the challenge for me to be out of my comfort zone and try new things,” she said. “I think when you play a different position anywhere, your normal position always helps you with the challenge. You’re going to be using different kinds of techniques that you would use in your normal position; in that new spot you’re trying out. You’ll learn new things and be more aware.”

Finally, there is the senior goalkeeper and forward Shelby Stordahl. Stordahl will see limited playing time early in the season after having surgery on her shoulder over the summer.

However, that does not stop her from being one of the most vocal senior leaders on the practice field. Stordahl is still out there with her teammates cheering them on, helping coach them up and all-around being a positive force for the Tides.

As a senior who won a state championship in 2018, she is using her experience and expertise to help guide the underclassmen to play like the champions she believes the Tides are.

“I’m very excited, we have a lot of pressure on our backs coming off of our success of last season,” she said. “Our returning seniors are all of the group that won state our freshman year, so we saw what it takes to win and what it takes to get to that higher level. I think we are just trying to get there again and repeat our history.”

Gig Harbor faces Capital on Tuesday at home, before a road matchup against North Thurston on Thursday.

This story was originally published September 14, 2021 at 10:20 AM.