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Bellarmine Prep nabs Class 4A state soccer title, defeating Puyallup in a shootout
Shaun Scott
Puyallup senior midfielder Kyle Gaedke laid face first on the synthetic turf in agony after witnessing his final penalty kick of his high school career get blocked by Bellarmine Prep goalie Chris Carlin, preserving Bellarmine’s 4-3 triumph in the shootout and ultimately a 2-1 overtime win in the Class 4A state championship game on May 24 at Harry Lang Stadium in Lakewood.
After 80 minutes of regulation and two five-minute overtime sessions, the outcome of the state title came down to a shootout to determine the state champion. Bellarmine made four of its first five kicks and Puyallup had made three out of four attempts before Gaedke made his way to the mark for a shot to the send game into another extra session. If Gaedke had made the kick, there would have been a second shootout to determine the winner.
Unfortunately for the Vikings, Gaedke’s kick low to the ground to the left side of the goal was deflected away by Carlin to quell the threat.
Tears were flowing from the majority of Vikings players as they left the field. Emotions were running high, as the Vikings had gotten so close to reaching the pinnacle of sports, a championship trophy.
“Their goalie blocked it at the end,” Puyallup goalie Kyle Bilharz said. “There’s nothing we could do about it.”
In the final eight minutes of regulation, Puyallup had aspirations of a state championship celebration dancing in their heads.
Justin Veltung got the Vikings on the board, scoring from 10 yards out on the right side, putting the Vikings’ up 1-0 with eight minutes remaining in the game. The Puyallup crowd was in a frenzy but Bellarmine Prep showed no signs of slowing down. Throughout the entire contest, Bellarmine had multiple opportunities to score and finally they hit pay dirt when Tyler Mernaugh’s cross to the middle was headed into the left corner of the goal by Elliot Morton, tying the game at 1-1 with 2:28 left in the game.
“That was a lucky goal. We had them. We were up 1-0 and they put that in,” Bilharz said.
Vikings coach Matt White said his team knew going into the title game that Morton was Bellarmine Prep’s main offensive threat.
“We knew how good he was and we had him covered for most of the game,” White said. “All it took was to let him get loose one time and he was able to score.”
Bellarmine nearly won the game twice in the closing seconds of regulation but Bilharz made two acrobatic back-to-back saves to keep the Vikings dream alive.
In the overtime sessions, both teams had shots that nearly found the back of the net but the game wouldn’t be decided until it came down to penalty shots.
“Every soccer player I know wishes that it never comes down to penalty kicks to decide a game,” White said. “That’s how it goes though. We had lots of opportunities to score before we got to that point.”
Even though the loss stings like salt in the wound today, White said he’s proud of what the Vikings accomplished this past spring.
“I’m thankful for our players and how they played this year. Win or lose it doesn’t matter. I’m so proud of them and thankful for their all out effort,” White said. “A lot of other teams would have quit when they tied it up in the last two minutes, but not us. We took it right back to them and had our chances.”
Puyallup kickers nab berth in title game
Bedlam broke out along the Puyallup Vikings sideline following the biggest win in the history of the boys soccer program.
The Vikings were in celebration mode after defeating Beamer 1-0 in a slugfest between two South Puget Sound League teams in the Class 4A state semi-finals on May 23 at Harry Lang Stadium in Lakewood.
Puyallup’s speedy striker Veltung scored the only goal of the contest in the 25th minute of play. Veltung gained possession of the ball 40 yards away from the goal before taking off toward the goal at breakneck speeds. Beamer’s defenders gave chase but no one could catch Veltung before he blasted a shot low to the ground in the lower left corner of the goal completing the game’s only score of the evening.
Veltung’s goal may have propelled the Vikings into the lead, but it was the defense that preserved the victory for the Vikings. This game belonged to unsung names of Aaron Crouch, Pat O’Day, Evan Robicheau and Devin Thomas. The quartet made life difficult for Beamer’s talented offensive arsenal.
“Our defense just dominated. They were unstoppable,” Bilharz said. “Our defenders frustrated them and it took their team out of their game. They did an amazing job of keeping them in front and not letting them get many shots on goal. It was all about our defenders and midfielders tonight.”
Senior defender Couch said the coaching staff devised a game plan to counter Beamer’s tendencies on the offensive end. Ironically, Beamer was the only team to defeat Puyallup in the regular season.
“We knew we couldn’t let them get behind us. They like to use their headers and go over the top of the defense,” Couch said. “We didn’t let them win the headers and we kept everything right in front of us. We did it again and again and it worked. The coaches’ know what they’re doing and we practiced it to get ready for it. I thought we might be able to score one more goal tonight but the important thing is that we didn’t give up a goal.”
Couch said the final 10 minutes of the game felt like the longest minutes of his life.
“Time was moving way too slow out there for us,” Couch said. “I just wanted the clock to run out so we could go to the state championship. Here we are now.”