SEQUIM — The Storm King Soccer Club’s boys U-14 Blue team will play for a berth in the Washington State Youth Soccer Association’s Founders Cup semifinals this weekend.
Comprised of players from Forks, Port Angeles and Sequim, Storm King Blue will host a quarterfinal match against Seattle United West at the Albert Haller Playfields in Sequim at 12:30 p.m. Saturday.
Admission to the game is free.
Playing against teams from the Seattle-Tacoma area, the Storm King Blue side finished second in the top division of the North Puget Sound League during the regular season.
The team then won its group stage against three other teams to earn a Founders Cup invite, and defeated Bainbridge Island 2-0 last Saturday to advance to Saturday’s quarterfinal.
With a win Saturday, Storm King will play in the semifinals next weekend at Tukwila’s Starfire Sports Complex, the training facility of the Seattle Sounders.
Storm King coach Michael McAleer pointed to a couple of factors that make this team special.
Three players, midfielders Oscar Gonzalez Jr., Hugo Sandoval and Tony Hernandez-Flores, commute in from Forks for practices and games each week.
“They have committed to this team and they make the three- or four-hour roundtrip to Agnew or Sequim for practices, and to Seattle, Kent or Bellevue for games,” McAleer said.
McAleer also said that he and coach Kevin Parker are a rarity at the club soccer level, parents who volunteer their time as coaches and no receive financial compensation.
The duo has coached the team for the past four seasons.
Team members are: Navy Brenske-Thomas, Eli Gish, Garret Hoesel, Mike McAleer, Chris Morgan, Nathan Miller, Reid Parker, Tane Ridle and Ryan Tolberd of Sequim; Anton Kathol, Tanner Lunt and Sean Rankin of Port Angeles; and Sandoval, Gonzalez and Hernandez-Flores of Forks.
For more information on Storm King Soccer Club, visit www.stormkingsoccer.com.
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Sports reporter Michael Carman can be contacted at 360-452-2345, ext. 5250 or at mcarman@peninsuladailynews.com.