Stadium boys soccer edges Bainbridge, 1-0, to win bidistrict championship

The Stadium High School Tigers had a similar chance last spring. But they couldn’t finish the deal against rival Silas in the Class 3A Pierce County League boys soccer championship game.

Stadium more than made up for that disappointment on Thursday night at Harry E. Lang Stadium in Lakewood when they beat Bainbridge, 1-0, to win the 3A West Central/Southwest bidistrict title.

“This is for sure redemption,” senior Owen Bliskis said. “Last year was unlucky. We lost, at home, 2-0 in the final. It wasn’t a great day. But we came back, worked real hard, and look where we’re at now.”

Where the Tigers are at now is getting set to begin play in the 3A state bracket, at one of four sites, next Friday, May 20. They enter the tournament holding the top qualifying spot from the bidistrict tournament, but won’t find out who their opponent is until the seeding draw is held this weekend by the WIAA.

This chance didn’t exist for Stadium or anybody else a season ago, when the WIAA canceled all state postseason tournaments due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This year’s state tournament will be the first since 2019, since spring sports also were shut down when the pandemic really began in March 2020.

Bainbridge, out of the 3A Metro League, advances as the second-place team from the bidistrict tournament.

“We’re just enjoying every minute right now,” Stadium coach Jeremy Leffel said. “We’ll take every game as it comes. This just feels like a gift. I told them today, it’s like a gift to be here. We’re just happy to be playing. No expectations. We want to take it all, but we’re just taking it a day at a time.”

Bliskis earned the game-winning goal in the 45th minute, pounding a turf-burner of a shot into the lower right corner of the Spartans’ net on a free kick opportunity from just above the 18-yard penalty box. Bainbridge committed seven bodies to form a defensive wall in front of the right side of the net, from where Bliskis had his shot, and positioned goalkeeper Caleb Saks just behind the left edge of that wall.

“The keeper was right behind the wall, so I knew he couldn’t see the ball,” Bliskis said. “So I just passed it to the side he wasn’t on and he couldn’t get to it.”

The opportunity was set up on a nifty move from Max Hymer, who eluded an attempted challenge from a Bainbridge defender and drew the foul when instead Hymer was tripped up at that spot.

“Max did a great job drawing the foul,” Bliskis said. “Then my guys gave me the ball, and I just had to do what I had to do and that’s the game right there.”

It was only “the game” thanks to some stellar defensive work throughout the contest in front of Stadium keeper Sam Walter, and then several big stops from the senior himself. The first of the big saves came in the 27th minute, as Damoni McKenna-Greenawalt worked his way free off the right side of the goal, dribbled in close and let fly with a low bullet of a shot seemingly destined for the left corner of the goal.

Instead, Walter slid over, got low and got both hands up to slap the ball just outside the upright to keep the game scoreless. Walter came up huge again twice in the final five minutes with the Spartans pressing the action.

“At that point, it’s just instinct,” Walter said. “You’re just going where your body takes you.”

First, he punched a ball up and over the crossbar with a leaping save, then in the final two minutes got horizontal diving to his left to grab another potential game-tying attempt.

“We knew Bainbridge was a tough opponent,” Walter said. “They played Silas, who was our toughest opponent this season. They beat ‘em. We knew this going to be a tough game coming in.”

CLASS 1A

Bellevue Christian 2, Vashon Island 0: The defending 1A state champions will have to wait two days for another chance to punch their ticket to the state tournament after Thursday night’s loss in the 1A West Central District title game.

Bellevue Christian (12-3-2) controlled possession much of the way, took a quick lead on Andrew Wei’s early goal in the first half, and Alex Von Fuchs added another after the break to lift the Vikings to the district championship at Stadium Bowl.

The loss was the first of the season to a 1A Nisqually League opponent for the top-seeded Pirates (14-3-1), who played Bellevue Christian to a scoreless draw in the first meeting in March, then topped the Vikings, 2-1, late last month.

Vashon was short-handed for Thursday’s third meeting, coach Scott Nicolino said, missing a pair of key offensive players, and will look to regroup in a must-win situation this weekend.

The Pirates are playing for a repeat trip to the tournament after winning the program’s first title in 2019 — the last time it was played before the entirety of the 2020 season and 2021 postseason were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Hopefully we can get healthy in the next handful of days, and take the back door into the state tournament and make a run and defend our title,” Nicolino said.

The Pirates play Life Christian (6-5-6) in Saturday afternoon’s winner-to-state contest at 1 p.m. at Stadium Bowl.

Vashon has won both of its meetings with Life Christian this season, including besting the Eagles, 3-1, in a semifinals game Monday.

Staff writer Lauren Smith contributed to this report.