COLLEGE SOCCER: Peninsula men vault into first place with win

PORT ANGELES — The Peninsula College men fought their way back into first place in the North Region with a crucial 2-1 win over Whatcom.

Meanwhile, the women got a pair goals each from Taya Bohenko and Briana-Jean Tanaka in an 8-0 win over the Orcas to keep pace with Skagit Valley for a chance at the North Region crown.

In the men’s game, the Pirates got an unassisted goal right at the end of the first half from Matthew Enriquez at an incredibly sharp angle on a shot that found the far end of the net. The Pirates scored three minutes later early in the second half with a goal from Manny Garcia after a pair of Pirates got behind the Orcas’ defense. Whatcom was able to get a late goal in the 75th minute, but the Pirates were able to hold on for the final 15 minutes to earn the win.

Goalkeeper Laurin Lattow made three saves to pick up the victory.

The standings for the North Region are unusual this year, with the Peninsula men having the most wins, but more losses than three teams below them. The Pirates are first at 5-2-1 (8-3-1 overall), while Everett is second at 3-0-4, and Skagit Valley and Bellevue are tied for third at 3-1-4. Even Whatcom is in the mix at 3-2-3. Not long ago, the Pirates found themselves in fourth place but with two wins and a tie in their past three games, they have vaulted into first place.

For the women, the Pirates scored quickly, getting a goal in the first minute from Caneel Corpuz. They were up 5-0 after just 25 minutes and cruised the rest of the way. Tanaka had an assist to go with her two goals, while Blake Plummer had a goal and an assist, Shawna Larson had an unassisted goal and Isis-Jade Bryant had a goal.

Jaeda Mae Edayan, Sydney Soskis and Anna Petty all had assists, while Talia Marini picked up the shutout in goal, though she had no official saves as the Pirates defense clamped down on Whatcom.

The women’s standings are also quirky this year as the Pirates find themselves in second place despite not losing a single game all year.

The Pirates stand at second with a record of 6-0-2 (11-0-2 overall). In first place is a strong defensive Skagit Valley team at 7-0-1. Skagit and Peninsula played to a 0-0 tie a couple of weeks ago and the Pirates will get another crack at the Cardinals on the road on Oct. 25. The Cardinals and Pirates combined have allowed only 11 goals in 23 games. Since that 0-0 game, the Pirates have won two straight by a combined score of 18-0.

The women next host Shoreline (0-6, 0-9) at noon Saturday while the men’s game against Shoreline (0-6, 0-7-1) is at 2:15 p.m. The last time the women played Shoreline, they won 20-0, a school record for most goals in a game.