![At the bottom of the third inning, the Lions are still scoreless. Rowe stands at home plate, preparing to bat, while Vandenbrink stands off to the side as the next batter up. Despite having the bases loaded, the team was unable to score any runs. “It’s just the beginning of the season. We’re just going to be playing out best by June, [and] that’s where champions are,” Rowe said.](https://wlhsnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/IMG_3077-1200x900.jpg)
![All smiles. The group poses for a photo with last year’s book, “This is Our House,” along with their award for third Best in Show. Meikle, who was an Editor-in-Chief for the yearbook last year as well, holds both and stands at the center of the group. “That was an amazing feeling, going and grabbing the third place award,” Meikle said. “All of it paid off. I cried so much over that book, being able to receive [the award] was one of the highlights of my high school career, it was like the coolest thing ever.”](https://wlhsnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/8bookpose_philly-1200x800.jpg)
Coming down to the wire Saturday night, the Boys’ Soccer Team ended its season with a bitter taste in its mouth. With regulation and double overtime resulting in a 1-1 tie, the game was pushed to a penalty shootout during which McKay won in penalty kicks, 5-4.
“We were happy with the league results, even though we lost,” Hugo Rhoades, senior captain said.
About 30 minutes into the first half McKay scored its first goal on a penalty kick. West Linn’s offense made many attempts, but McKay’s defense proved too strong.
The Lions returned in the second half with a strong presence. Ryan Harman, senior goalkeeper, denied multiple goals, keeping McKay in check.
“Our team has a lot of depth in the field, which helped,” Alec Nakano, junior midfielder said.
Rhoades scored the first goal with about ten minutes left on the clock after a smooth pass from Nour Alharithi, senior. West Linn was enthusiastic for overtime with the score still tied.
At the end of overtime, there was still no advance in score, and double overtime was set on the clock. After 90 minutes of play, the Lions came out unaffected, fighting until the end.
Five minutes into double overtime McKay threatened, but Max Dimm, senior defenseman, stopped the attempt instantly. Time after time the team showed endurance and kept the score even leading the game into a penalty shootout.
The players lined up on the center line and West Linn made the first kick. In the end it was four kicks made by West Linn, and five made by McKay.
“It’s too bad that the end resulted like it did, but the season was great,” Greg Bean, head coach, said. “The boys got along great. They were always laughing, making real memories.”
