High school soccer is in full swing, and Oceanside’s boys teams are ramping up for the playoffs.
In senior boys action, the Kwalikum Kondors settled for a 1-1 tie against the Dover Bay Dolphins last Thursday.
“We dominated the second half but could not beat their goalie,” Kwalikum head coach Butch Gayton said after, adding “we are injury-riddled right now.”
The Kondors were trailing 1-0 at the half after scoring on a play in which KSS keeper Matt Griffith separated his shoulder diving for the ball, and Brayden Osborn scored to tie it 10 minutes into the second. Griffith is gone for the season.
The tie leaves the Kondors 3-0-1 and top of the heap in their league with one game remaining.
The team then shifts its attention to the eight-team AA North Island championships Oct. 29-30 hosted by KSS at Merle Logan Turf Fields in Nanaimo. The top five advance to the Island finals Nov. 5-6 at UVic in Victoria.
There are 17 senior boys teams vying for one of the eight spots in the AA North Islands.
Meanwhile down the road, Ballenas Secondary’s senior boys bounced back from their opening season loss to KSS with a pair of wins, beating NDSS 8-0 last Thursday, and the Wellington Wildcats 6-3 on Tuesday.
GAMES ON: The Kondors are home at QB Rec Fields today (Oct. 17) against the Woodlands Golden Eagles, and the Whalers host the Dolphins from Dover Bay. Both games at 3:30 p.m.
IN JR. BOYS action, the Kondors continued to roll with a come-from-behind 3-1 win over previously unbeaten Woodlands last Wednesday in Nanaimo.
The two teams played to a scoreless first half, and the Golden Eagles took a 1-0 lead 10 minutes into the second half, but it wasn’t enough as Kwalikum got two goals from Blair Stewart five minutes apart and an insurance marker just before the whistle by Tyler Lucente.
The young Kondors closed out the regular season at QB Rec Fields on Wednesday (score unavailable at press time). A win would lift them to 5-0 for a lock on the top seed heading into their eight-team North Island playdowns Oct. 23-24 in Courtenay. The top three teams advance to the Island’s, being hosted by Brentwood College in Mill Bay Oct. 30-31.