Sehome heads to Kitsap Peninsula to face Kingston in first round
Sehome vs. Kingston
6 p.m. Tuesday, May 17, at North Kitsap High School
Scouting the Mariners
Record: 15-1-3
League: Northwest Conference (first, 10-0-2)
District: Northwest (second)
Previous state appearances: 20
State playoff record: 27-20
State titles: 2 (2002, 2008)
The Mariners enter state coming off their first loss of the season, a 3-0 setback to Archbishop Murphy in the district title game on Saturday, May 14. Prior to that, Sehome got late goals from seniors Kevin Sun and Ethan Hunger to lift the team to a 1-0 victory over Bellingham and a 2-1 win over Cedarcrest in the first two rounds of the tournament. Sehome is making its first trip to state since it lost in the first round of the 2012 playoffs. The three goals scored by Archbishop Murphy marked only the second time this season that the Mariners have allowed more than one, as they have posted 11 shutouts.
Scouting the Buccaneers
Record: 15-2-1
League: 2A Olympic (first, 11-1-0)
District: Sea-King/West Central (third)
Previous state apperances: Four
State playoff record: 3-4
State titles: None
The Buccaneers rebounded from a 1-0 first-round loss to Lindberg in the bi-district tournament to beat Foster 2-1 in the third-place game on Saturday, May 14. Kingston trailed 1-0 at halftime, despite out shooting the Bulldogs 11-3, but got a game-tying score from Leo Hernandez and the game winner from Alex Barret with 30 seconds remaining. The Buccaneers’ only other loss of the season came 1-0 at North Kitsap on April 16. Like the Mariners, they have posted 11 shutouts this season, but they’ve allowed two or more goals three times. This marks the fourth straight year Kingston has made state.
Key to the game: Both teams have shown the ability to shut down opponents and get game-winning goals in the final few minutes of regulation. Don’t be surprised to see this one go down to the wire, so mental fortitude could play a big role. Sehome claimed the only previous meeting between the two schools in the state playoffs 2-1 in the 2008 quarterfinals.
Herald’s pick: Sehome 1-0
This story was originally published May 16, 2016 at 5:57 PM with the headline "Sehome heads to Kitsap Peninsula to face Kingston in first round."