BREMERTON — The Peninsula College women’s soccer team earned its fourth straight Northwest Athletic Conference West Division title as with a 6-0 win over Olympic.
The men also won Friday, dropping the Rangers 5-2.
The Pirate men guaranteed at least a second-place finish in the West with the in win at Gordon Park Field.
The NWAC’s top-ranked Pirate women recorded their 18th shutout in 20 matches this season to claim one of four No. 1 seeds in the conference’s soccer playoffs.
The Pirates have allowed two goals and have scored 77 goals in 20 matches in 2014.
In Friday’s match, the Pirates opened the scoring when Alyssa Bertuleit did what she does best, which is speed past the Rangers back line to the baseline and cross the ball back into the box where Mary Pierce was there to put it into the net, just 14 minutes into the match.
The best defense in the NWAC, and maybe the nation, did not need any more than that, but they got it.
Kai Mahuka added a goal in the 19th minute, assisted by Brittney Yoshimura, to make it 2-0 at halftime, and the Pirates simply wore down the Rangers in the second half, with C.J. Stetser scoring twice and Lexi Krieger also scoring twice. Assists came from Rebecca Tafte and Stetser.
Emily Flinn and Kasie Lough combined on the shutout.
When the final whistle blew to end Friday’s match, the Pirates celebrated their fourth straight West Division title, which is remarkable considering Peninsula College launched women’s soccer only five years ago.
“I couldn’t be happier for this team,” Peninsula director of athletics Rick Ross said.
“[Head coach] Kanyon [Anderson] has built this program from the ground up, and it’s not just about recruiting great players.
“These young ladies work very hard to get better every day, they play through injuries, they buy in to a team concept, they benefit from an outstanding coaching staff and they just don’t give up goals.”
That effort has gained them national attention.
They are currently ranked No. 6 in the latest National Soccer Coaches Association of America’s Junior College Division I poll.
Peninsula received a first-round bye and will host the winner of a first-round playoff between Treasure Valley College and either Edmonds or Shoreline, at Wally Sigmar Field on Saturday.
Peninsula wrapped up its regular season with a 17-1-2 overall record, 15-1-2 in the West.
Men’s Game
Peninsula 5, Olympic 2
The Pirates needed a win to stay in contention for the West Division championship, and they too got off to a strong start with a goal in the 13th minute.
Trevan Estrallado struck a ball from the left wing that crossed the box to the far post where Steven Rodriguez had timed his run perfectly, heading it into the net to the delight of a small crowd of Pirates fans who made the trip to Kitsap County.
Peninsula made it 2-0 with eight minutes remaining in the half when Chris Chertude crossed a ball along the ground that carried in front of the Rangers’ goal, somehow finding its way past a host of Olympic defenders, including goalkeeper Robin Potts, all the way to the far post where Victor Sanchez was there to send it home.
Olympic rallied to tie the score with a pair of goals in the second half, but the Pirates responded with Sanchez hitting his second goal of the match in the 83rd minute and Rodriguez also striking again for the insurance goal in the 87th minute.
Aaron Zavolokin had four saves for the Pirates.
The Pirates, who started the season with 10 straight wins, finished with two wins, four ties and one loss in their final seven matches.
They are, however, still nationally ranked at No. 12 and alive in their quest for a third straight NWAC championship.
They slipped to No. 3 in the latest NWAC Alaska Airlines Poll and are likely to finish second in the West, pending the outcome of Saturday’s Highline vs. Tacoma match.
The second-place finisher hosts Pierce, the third-place team from the South Division, for a first-round playoff on Wednesday.
The winner of that match would then travel to meet the top finisher in the East, top-ranked North Idaho.
Should Tacoma upset Highline Saturday, the Pirates would be home for a second-round match on Saturday.
The entire NWAC playoff picture, including match times and locations, will be posted on the NWAC web site at www.nwacsports.org on Monday.
