Boys Soccer / Metro League -- Usual Powers Line Up In Metro -- O'dea, Prep, Blanchet Look Strong Again

Three Metro League AA boys soccer teams will make it to the state playoffs next month and no one will be surprised if they are O'Dea, Seattle Prep and Blanchet.

As they say in the movies, "Round up the usual suspects."

Last year, O'Dea finished second in the state behind West Valley of Yakima; Seattle Prep was fourth. Blanchet has the best start this season, 4-0-1 overall.

"I think there is more parity than people think," said Blanchet Coach Chuck Sekyra, whose team was tied 1-1 by Chief Sealth two weeks ago. "There are a lot of teams out there trying hard to prove they belong in the top echelon. You can see it in their energy."

Metro soccer has "weighted divisions" to avoid mismatches. All four Class AA teams in Division A (O'Dea, Blanchet, Seattle Prep and Ballard) advance to postseason as does the winner of Division B and Division C.

Two of the three AAA teams advance.

A look at the league:

Class AA favorites

Blanchet

1996 record - 10-3-3.

Coach - Chuck Seykra (2nd year).

Key players - Nate Basich, F, sr.; Sean Conlon, GK, jr.; Ljubo Viskovich, F, sr., Trevor Kitchin, F-mid, sr.; Robel Haile, F, soph.; Brian Williams, D, jr.

Strengths - Depth, playing like hungry team.

Concerns - Early-season injuries. Williams is out for about a month with knee injury.

Miscellany - Early-season tie against Chief Sealth may have served as wake-up call.

Outlook - Any team that beats O'Dea 4-1 as the Braves did last week is a state contender.

Seattle Prep

1996 record - 14-4-4 (fourth in state).

Coach - Dick Sandstrom (24th year).

Key players - Pat Colley, mid, sr.; Wade Ambrose, D, sr.; Kyle Pletz, F, sr.; Luis Aragon, mid, sr.; Keenan O'Leary, sweeper, sr.

Strengths - Senior leadership, speed.

Concerns - Unspectacular 2-1-3 start with loss to Kennedy and ties against Lake Washington, Shorewood and Garfield. Panthers have scored only four goals in league play this season.

Miscellany - Fast, entertaining team to watch even if they aren't scoring many early season goals.

Outlook - Definite playoff team.

O'Dea

1996 record - 15-7-1 (Metro champion, AA state runner-up).

Coach - Pat Raney (25th year).

Key players - Sean Standley, mid, sr.; Jim Skurski, mid-sweeper, sr.; Ryan Robinson, stopper, sr.; Kyle Sontgerath, GK, sr.; Mike McNiff, striker, sr.; Javon Broderick, F-mid, soph.; Mike Grega, mid-sweeper, soph.

Strengths - Tradition, good pool of players.

Concerns - Defense, slow start with 2-2-1 record.

Miscellany - Irish got off to slow start last year, too, but wound up second in state. They lost state-championship game to West Valley of Yakima, 3-2.

Outlook - As usual, look for the Irish to be in the thick of things at the end.

Rebuilding fast

Lakeside

1996 record - Over .500.

Coach - Chuck McChesney (3rd year).

Key players - Benjy Diggs, center mid, jr., is considered team's most dangerous player but hasn't played yet because of injury; Chris Rogge, sweeper, sr. Seven freshmen are on varsity and early frosh producers are John Overman, stopper, Luke Rona, mid, and Vario Velez, mid-F.

Strengths - Young and energetic.

Concerns - Needs leadership.

Miscellany - McChesney coached Lakeside girls to state title last fall.

Outlook - Should be in the mix. Started 2-0-1 with wins over Garfield and Hale and tie with Ballard.

Ballard

1996 record - 12-2-2 (won promotion to Division A this year).

Coach: Billy O'Neill (3rd year).

Key players - Carlos Reyes, mid, sr.; Carroll Tangen, mid, sr.; Noah Gray, mid, jr.; Alfredo Reyes, def, soph.

Strengths - Attitude that Ballard must win every 50-50 ball. Carlos Reyes is one of league's top players.

Concerns - Replacing 10 of 11 starters who graduated. . . . . No team picks up yellow cards faster than the Beavers.

Miscellany - O'Neill is men's coach at Shoreline Community College in the fall. . . . . Five players off last year's team are playing college soccer. Jay Ford and Eric Myre are at Western Washington and Ben Scott, Misal Vasquez and Victor Foncesa are at Shoreline CC.

Outlook - Ballard is only public AA school in the top division of the weighted Metro League. Beavers had best record in city in 1996 and that success earned them promotion.

Could surprise

Eastside Catholic

1996 record - 5-6-8.

Coach - Scott Newman (2nd year).

Key players - Joe Schwab, def, sr.; Brian Wilson, F, sr.; Jason Shemchuk, mid, jr.; Casey Henebry, F, jr.; Jeremy Bean, def, jr. Two freshmen making an impact are Andy Carpenter, mid, and Tyler Henebry, def.

Strengths - Speed, work rate.

Concerns - Goal productons from returning players.

Miscellany - Crusaders are off to 2-1-3 start with victories over Ingraham and Roosevelt, loss to Seattle Prep, and ties against Bellevue, Juanita and Sealth.

Outlook - Looks like a decent team.

Nathan Hale

1996 record - 8-5-3 (won promotion to Division B for this year).

Coach - Priestwick Sackeyfio (1st year).

Key players - Tyler Free, F, sr., Chris Takasugi, mid-F, sr.; Lonnie Bash, def-stopper, sr.; Mohamud Sheikh, center mid, sr., Victor Aguilar, GK, sr.; Don Le, mid-F, jr.; Ilyas Ismail, F, sr.

Strengths - Lots of seniors, goalkeeping.

Concerns - Speed, blending in a lot of new players.

Miscellany - Last year's 8-5-3 mark in Metro's bottom division was best record for Hale since the Schmetzers (Brian and twins Andy and Walter) played at the school in the 1980s. . . . . Sackeyfio coached Hale girls last fall.

Outlook - Team deserved promotion and could surprise.

Chief Sealth

1996 record - 3-10-1.

Coach - Doug Stan (2nd year).

Key players - Andrew Saldana, sweeper, sr.; Daniel Ijiomah, F, sr.; Roberto Mercado, GK, jr.; Valentin Mercado, mid, jr.; Ruben Seoanes, F, jr.; Adam Hellburg, def, sr.; Jose Hernandez, def, sr.

Strengths - Good defense, potentially explosive offense.

Concerns - Depth.

Miscellany - Coach Stan and assistants have done such a good job getting boys out for the sport that Seahawks have added junior varsity team this year. . . . . The Mercados may be best brother duo in the city.

Outlook - Might be Cinderella team of 1997. Posted impressive 1-1 ties in first week against Blanchet and Eastside Catholic.

The others

West Seattle

1996 record - 5-5-3.

Coach - Dan Peterson (6th year).

Key players - Tony Coronado, mid-F, sr.; Lee Bennett, mid, jr.; Brannan Orton, mid-def, jr.

Strengths - Midfield.

Concerns - Defense.

Miscellany - This team loves to counterattack.

Outlook - Have decent chance to win third division and qualify for playoffs. Started 1-1-1.

Ingraham

1996 record - 5-5-1.

Coach - Tom Coan (4th year)

Key players - Shaun Novian, mid, sr., is the standout; Other contributors: Ahmad Abdo, def, Frosh; Fred Rea, def, soph.; Tom Kithivan, mid, jr.; Chris Garland, mid, Frosh.

Strengths - Discipline, eagerness to improve.

Concerns - No experienced goalie.

Miscellany - Rams expect to get five more players eligible soon.

Outlook - Just might make similar late-season charge as last year when they were 5-1-1 in final seven games.

Rainier Beach

1996 record - 3-8-1.

Co-coaches - Stan White (2nd year) and Kevin Clay (1st year).

Key players - Eli Joseph, sweeper, sr.; Sam Habtom, mid, soph.; Eyasu Meshesha, mid, fr.; Mateo Jack, striker, jr.

Strengths - Defense, athleticism of several players.

Concerns - Some players lack fundamentals; team sometimes struggles to win 50-50 balls.

Miscellany - Only co-coaching duo in league.

Outlook - Should improve on last year's record.

Class AAA schools

Garfield

1996 record - 9-6-2.

Coach - Alex Zahajko (15th year).

Key players - Nick Ballard Jones, F, sr.; Cameron Reith, F, jr., Mike Witt, def., sr.; Matt Witt, mid, sr.

Strengths - Good at maintaining ball possession, good team discipline.

Concerns - Counter-attacking and crosses weren't up to standard in early games.

Outlook - Looks like best AAA team.

Roosevelt

1996 record - Top AAA team.

Coach - Gary Hunter (1st year, succeeds longtime Coach Joel Watters, who retired).

Key players - Matt Snell, mid, sr.; Nate Russo, sweeper, sr.; Elliott Harris, GK, jr.; Kyle Uno, mid, jr.

Strengths - Senior leadership.

Concerns - Lost first three games then beat Franklin 4-1 last night. Adjusting to new coach.

Outlook - There's talent here.

Franklin

1996 record - 5-9.

Coach - Jesus Bautista (7th year)

Key players - Gabriele Provenza, center mid, jr.; Jacob McGraw, mid, fr.; Evan Dick, center forward, soph.

Strengths - Defense, Provenza.

Concerns - Some players lack good fundamentals.

Outlook - Probably not enough horses to get past Roosevelt and Garfield in AAA division.

Cleveland will not field a soccer team. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Metro boys soccer players to watch

Wade Ambrose, sr., Seattle Prep - Steady defender is one of the main reasons Prep hasn't surrendered a goal so far against a Metro opponent. All-Metro pick last year.

Nate Basich, sr., Blanchet - Basketball player who plays hard and is big target at 6 feet 4. Has scored two goals in each of past two games.

Javon Broderick, soph., O'Dea - Cross-country runner who never seems to wear down on the soccer field.

Pat Colley, sr., Seattle Prep - Midfielder is one of the most useful Panthers on both ends of the field.

Sean Conlon, jr., Blanchet - Goalie might be best in the league.

Benji Diggs, jr., Lakeside - Most dangerous Lion still hasn't played this year because of injury.

Tyler Free, sr., Hale - Left-footed scoring threat who was All-Metro pick last year.

Robel Halie, soph., Blanchet - One of quickest players in the city.

Nick Ballard Jones, sr., Garfield - Experienced, talented player who can find an open teammate or the back of the net.

Eli Joseph, sr., Rainier Beach - Good athlete who learned his soccer in Nigeria.

Trevor Kitchin, sr., Blanchet - Considered sparkplug and team leader for the Braves.

Valentin Mercado, jr., Chief Sealth - Midfielder already might have scored the goal of the year with a 40-yarder for surprising 1-1 tie against Blanchet.

Roberto Mercado, jr., Chief Sealth - Goalkeeper brother of Valentin is one of key reasons the Seahawks have become a team to be reckoned with.

Shaun Novian, sr., Ingraham - Most dangerous Ram. Is passing more and better this year and playing better off the ball.

Keenan O'Leary, sr., Seattle Prep - Sweeper has leaguewide respect as Prep's enforcer. "He's a rock," said one coach. An all-league pick last year.

Gabriel Provenza, jr., Franklin - Opposing coaches rave about this skilled center midfielder who directs the Quaker offense. Made all-Metro as a sophomore.

Kyle Pletz, sr., Seattle Prep - Quick, elusive forward who had hat trick in 4-0 victory against Eastside Catholic last week. Considered excellent in the air.

Cameron Reith, jr., Garfield - Has scored eight goals in first four games, including hat trick against Lakeside.

Carlos Reyes, sr., Ballard - Center midfielder is only starter back from good team. Has good vision and ability to change a game.

Jim Skurski, sr., O'Dea - UW-bound kicker off Irish football team is a scoring threat in this sport, too. All-Metro pick in both sports.

Matt Snell, sr., Roosevelt - Creative midfielder who puts the flair in the Roughrider attack. A 1996 all-Metro pick who could dribble through a Christmas shopping crowd. Scored three goals against Franklin last night.

Sean Standley, sr., O'Dea - Midfielder is one of best passers in the league. Creative player who reads the field well. All-Metro pick last year.