By Christopher Wood
The rain was pouring down on the Bulldogs at home as they downed the Whatcom Community College Orcas 2-1 on September 20, keeping their undefeated streak going.
“This was a defining moment for us,” said Adam Finster, the bulldogs head coach.
Before this game, both Whatcom and Bellevue were both undefeated.
It was a test of endurance and stability as the field was in the unrelenting rain of the Saturday afternoon. The ball slipped out of its position slid around the drenched mud hole of a field while the players scrambled towards it. The slickness of the field led to some unexpectedly wild shots at the goals that came in at unpredictable angles. This would make the afternoon extremely difficult for the two starting keepers, Kevin Springer of BCC, and Casey Collins of Whatcom; both of whom had five saves for the day.
Vini Olivera of BCC scored the first goal of the game in the first 3 minutes of play. This was the only score of the first period as the weather of the day grew harsher, and the defenses kept the game close. Vini would attempt many more times to land a goal with seven shots to his name, but he would have to settle for one.
The second half mirrored the first to start out with no goals scored until nine minutes into it with an equalizer goal scored by Tyler Stocker of Whatcom. This left the game tied for the rest of the half, which was marked by three Whatcom players receiving yellow cards.
“I was scared that we were tied for so long,” said Vini Olivera.
The play became physical as both teams made multiple rallies to win. It came down to the wire. The outcome decided in the final minute of the game with the winning goal scored by BCC’s Matt Eronemo.