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This Storm’s Soccer Surge is Years in the Making

Skyview players bonded through club soccer

By Paul Danzer, Columbian Soccer, hockey and Community Sports Reporter
Published: November 18, 2010, 12:00am
2 Photos
Skyview junior Sheaffer Skadsen, left, scored the lone goal of the Storm's Class 4A quarterfinal playoff victory over Eastlake.
Skyview junior Sheaffer Skadsen, left, scored the lone goal of the Storm's Class 4A quarterfinal playoff victory over Eastlake. Photo Gallery

There are numbers that indicate it is no surprise that Skyview has advanced to the Class 4A state semifinals for girls soccer.

The Storm have 14 wins, one loss and three ties. They have scored 55 goals. They have been scored on only nine times. They have posted 12 shutouts in 18 matches.

There are other numbers, though. These are statistics that indicate just how unusual it is for a team from Clark County to crash the Class 4A soccer final four.

When the Storm takes the field at 8 p.m. Friday against Kentwood, it will be just the third time since the WIAA girls soccer tournament began in 1981 that a team from Vancouver has played in a Class 4A semifinal match. Columbia River made it this far in 1997 and in 1995, both times losing twice to finish fourth.

Skyview has won multiple Greater St. Helens League titles. But the Storm’s only previous state tournament appearances ended in first-round losses in 2001 and 2002.

“I feel like before (this season) we thought this was the unreachable place, but we’ve broken through that,” Skyview senior Brittany Wilson said.

The Storm broke through with 1-0 wins over Eastlake of Sammamish in the first round and Snohomish in the quarterfinals. The quarterfinal triumph came on junior Sheaffer Skadsen’s 13th goal of the season, a finish from a corner kick late in overtime.

Skadsen is part of a dynamic offense that shares the fun up front.

Wilson has 12 goals and 10 assists. Senior Illeana Zaballa as seven goals and 10 assists. Senior Cassie Ripley had 10 goals and four assists before suffering a season-ending ankle injury at the start of the postseason.

“We just enjoy playing together. It’s fun to play with such skilled players and seeing what can come out of it,” Zaballa said.

The goal-producers get the recognition, while a sturdy defense has provided the foundation for this Storm team.

“We wouldn’t have gotten through if Hannah (Johnson) hadn’t made some spectacular saves,” Wilson said. “Our defense is really strong. Our midfield controls the game, and our forwards just work really hard.”

Coach Darin DeGrande said one reason this Skyview team has advanced this far is that many of the players have been together for years.

Five seniors played club soccer together for eight years, and a core group of juniors have played together in club soccer as well.

In that respect, this Storm group is similar to many of the Puget Sound-area schools that routinely make deep playoff runs in soccer. Often the most successful large schools draw heavily from one or two top-flight club teams.

But talent and teamwork are only part of the formula. It also requires players accepting roles they might not play in the club season.

“Everybody does what’s asked of them,” DeGrande said.

To win in November, when the stakes are higher and the weather wetter, a team must outwork the opposition. This Skyview team sensed when the playoffs started with a bi-district win over Gig Harbor that this was an opportunity worth fighting for.

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“I think it means a lot this year because we have a lot of seniors who maybe won’t play college soccer, so this is our last chance to play together,” Zaballa said.

Among those who appreciates that is senior defender Allie Townsend. She missed her junior season with an ACL injury. This season, she moved from marking back — a defender generally assigned to the opposition’s top player — to central defender because fellow senior Maddie Stumpf, an all-league central defender, missed the whole season with a knee injury.

“I’m just glad I’ve gotten a second chance to play soccer again,” Townsend said. “I’m really proud of our team for getting this far. To be able to contribute to that is really an honor.”

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Columbian Soccer, hockey and Community Sports Reporter