Heat Red 93 at Rainier Challenge
The HPFC Heat 93 Red team participated in their first tournament of the spring season under Coach Don Preiss. By all accounts, the team promises to be stronger than last year’s squad with some talented newcomers from teams around the area. There was some hopeful anticipation among the team and its fans as the boys took the field for their first match on Memorial Day weekend. Coach Don has been drilling the boys in the 4-3-3 formation and had just come off two weeks of extended practice sessions. The Heat 93 Red played in the PDL Level 3 last year so they were surely going to be tested against two PDL Level 1 teams in the Eastside FC Red 93 and the Spokane Shadow 93, as well as a U14/U15 mix of PDL Level 1 players on the NW Nationals (the U14 team being one of the favorites to win next spring’s state cup).
In somebody’s idea of a joke, the U15 boys’ teams were scheduled for 8:00 AM matches on both Saturday and Sunday and, if they did well on those days, another 8:00 AM match on Monday. On a misty morning, with the sun struggling to break through fog, the Eastside FC Red struck quickly. With little game time together as a team, Coach Don juggled the line up trying to find combinations of players that worked well together and to see which positions best suited the talents of his players. With an inexperienced line-up, the team had a difficult time keeping up with the bigger and faster EFC Red team. The boys were on their heels immediately as EFC tallied quick goals, seemingly penetrating the defense at will, and the Heat struggled to find their pace the rest of the game. However, they never quit and competed to the end, finally scoring on beautiful direct kick by JJ (last name?) just outside the penalty area. The final score was 8-1 and it certainly left more questions than answers. Was the Red team more competitive than last year’s or was it going to be more of the same? The team left the field to go home and think about their performance.
Sunday morning the Red faced the U14 NW Nationals. Some of the Nationals were missing due to an ADP tournament in Oregon, so members of their U15 squad were recruited to fill out the roster. The play was much tighter than the first game with the Heat Red having more chances than in their first game. Josh Hart was outstanding in goal and thwarted numerous shots by the NW Nationals team. Still, the boys found themselves down 2-0 at halftime. In the second half the Red seemed to come out energized. Instead of playing not to lose, they began to switch the point of attack more effectively and aggressively as Coach Preiss had been training them. The Heat tallied a score in the 2nd half on a nice pass from Chris Flor to Trevor McGinnis. Although the Heat were now starting to have a distinct edge in play, the NW Nationals side converted on a corner kick to make it 3-1. The boys fought back hard and scored another goal to bring it within 3-2. It was one of those games where the team was feeling more in control of the match when time ran out. It was an important step for the team as they are learning to compete as a team, to trust their teammates, and ultimately their coach.
The last game of the tournament was one of anxious anticipation with the Spokane Shadow having beaten the NW Nationals 2-0 the previous day and playing the Eastside FC Red to a 2-2 draw that Sunday morning. Who was going to show up? The team that got pasted 8-1 by the Eastside FC Red or the team that took it to the NW Nationals?
The Spokane team proved to be a worthy opponent and aggressively attacked the Heat end, but a combination of luck and inspired goalie and defensive play keeping the Shadow at bay. The Heat also had some chances but they couldn’t convert. In the second half, the Shadow seemed to pick up the pace and in a short 5 minute span seemed to solve the secret of the defense and punched two goals in. This was certainly an opportunity for the Heat to wither and quit but instead they rose to the challenge and attacked relentlessly. Chris Flor headed a shot toward the goal that took a spectacular save from the Spokane goalie to prevent the ball from finding the back of the net. Minutes later Chris Flor took a nice pass deep in the Shadow end, deked a defensive player and chipped a beautiful shot over the onrushing goalie for the Heat’s first tally of the afternoon. The teams were now running up and down the field playing furiously when the ball was played out in front of the Shadow offense just outside the penalty box. Josh continued his great play coming out way out of the net to kick the ball away before the attacker reached the ball, but he squibbed the kick and it went to another Spokane forward who hit a wide open net as Josh desperately tried to get back in time. The Heat were not done and when Andrew Johnson [not entirely sure that it was Andrew] was taken down from behind with a sliding tackle in the penalty, the referee made the call. Jackson McFall drove a nice shot past the goalie and that remained the final score.
One might look at three losses and think that this was not a successful tournament -- but they would be mistaken. For some, the tournaments are a way to build their resume, but for the Heat the tournaments are proving grounds and an opportunity for the team to jell as a unit before the fall season starts. The boys showed real growth from beginning to end. They showed they could compete with PDL-1 level teams and that the coach was doing a great job of getting the boys to believe in themselves and trust the system. They have a lot to work on and will struggle at times but the future is bright.
