Orcas Island High School fall sports preview
Published 1:30 am Wednesday, September 24, 2025
By Declan O’Malley
Sounder contributor
Fall is here, and athletics at Orcas Island High School are in full swing, with the Vikings fielding boys and girls soccer, volleyball and cross-country teams this season.
Boys Soccer
The defending state champion Orcas Island boys soccer team is opening the 2025 season with a strong turnout of about 30 players, bolstered by a large and promising freshman class.
“Although we only have four returning seniors, we are returning seven to eight starters from last year’s championship season. We have always taken the approach that we build our team from the foundation up, so these numbers suit us just fine, focusing not just for the 2025 season but also for years to come,” head coach Terry Turner said.
According to the coaching staff, early signs this season have been highly encouraging, particularly the leadership demonstrated by the returning seniors. These veterans are leading by example, embodying values such as preparation, teamwork, sportsmanship and individual responsibility.
“The attitude and atmosphere of the team this preseason have felt very positive and grounded. The tone being set by the team leadership is that of hard work, dedication and excellence, but they have melded playfulness, fun, and positivity into the team culture in a very nice way,” Turner said.
While the Orcas squad includes several standout players, the coaches emphasized that the team’s greatest strengths remain its depth, preparation, and commitment to playing as a unit. Fans can expect an entertaining season built on the team’s championship foundation.
The Vikings started the season strong, carrying their momentum into two early victories. Orcas opened with a 2-1 home win over perennial contender St. George’s School.
“The games have been a good team experience, showing how we need to improve as a team and as individuals,” junior goalkeeper Tim Malo said.
Following the win, Orcas went on the road for the first time this season and rolled past Coupeville with a 9-0 victory to improve to 2-0.
“The team’s hard work paid off, winning two games — one against St. George’s and one against Coupeville,” freshman Jack Marl said. “The team is gelling well, and there was lots of game time for everyone. It’s going to be an amazing season.”
On Sept. 16, Orcas opened the week with an 8-0 win over Cedar Park Christian, followed by an 11-0 rout of Evangel Classical School from Marysville. The defense remained airtight, while the attack showcased creativity and depth. Turner credited a tactical adjustment for the team’s success.
“One of the key factors at play this week for the Orcas Boys soccer team was that we had decided to make some adjustments in our overall formation,” he said. “These changes were made to take better advantage of this team’s strengths and abilities. Players across the lineup were required to make adjustments to their individual positional play and team tactics.”
Turner added that the players embraced the changes quickly: “The boys responded extremely well to these changes, including our starters as well as our reserves coming off the bench. Anthony Conejo did a great job up front, anchoring and coordinating the attacking play. The combinations worked by the Shanks-Morales brothers together with the Conejo brothers have led to some very creative and entertaining scoring.”
Team leaders also expressed excitement over the early success.
“We’ve been having a great start to the season, with good chemistry and communication on and off the pitch which has led to several successful games so far as well as experimenting a bit with positions and formations to see what would fit best for the team,” said Joaquin Shanks Morales. “We have great expectations to make it far this season again and to always do our best.”
Teammate Angelo Vaccarella praised the opportunities for younger players to grow.
“We’ve had a lot of opportunities for the younger and developing players to work on their game, which is great, and also for us to try out different positions. I have great confidence that we can make it far and hopefully finish on top,” he said.
Orcas will hit the road for a league clash at La Conner on Thursday, Sept. 26, at 3:30 p.m.
Girls Soccer
Recap by Cienna Richardson
After a hiatus since 2019, girls soccer is back at Orcas Island for the 2025 season with a strong turnout of players.
“We are very excited about starting the girls soccer program once again at Orcas Island High School. We look forward to the excitement and progress toward a very competitive season,” athletic director Paul Steimel said.
The Vikings played their first home game Sept. 6 against Mount Baker. The final score was 7-1, with co-captain and junior Lucia Rios scoring for Orcas.
“I’m really happy I scored in the Mount Baker game, and it makes me even more excited for the rest of the season and what’s ahead,” Rios said.
On Sept. 9, Orcas traveled to South Whidbey, where they fell 8-0.
“Every game’s been helping us improve. We mess up sometimes, but we’re learning from it, and you can tell the effort is paying off. Our energy and commitment keep growing, and it’s so exciting to see how far we’ve come already,” Rios said.
Despite being a brand-new squad, the Vikings are making up for it with determination and drive.
“Even though our team is new, we are really good at communicating with each other on and off the field. As a team we can always grow and build on our skills, and right now we are working on clean and accurate passes,” senior starter Isabel Boyd. “This season I’ve been super excited. Having a girls soccer team is a really cool new experience and has been so fun.”
On Sept. 11, the Vikings played Providence Classical Christian. The game was close, in the first half it was 0-2, but Orcas scored a goal in the second half. The final game score was 4-1.
“We have improved a lot and focused on building a supportive team. We are excited to get better in the years to come,” said freshman Seffa Halabisky.
The Vikings traveled to play Coupeville on Sept. 16 with a score of 6-0. On Sept. 18, the Friday Harbor’s girls soccer team traveled to Orcas Island for a game that, despite the crowd’s cheers, resulted in a 7-0 score.
“We’ve been working hard on building stamina, footwork, shooting, and most importantly working together as a team. My goal this year is to have a great senior year playing soccer and to set the stage for the upcoming class-men to join!” said Boyd.
On Sept. 20, the Lady Vikings played Blaine at home with a final score of 7-1. The goal was scored by senior and co-team captain Chloe Anderson-Cleveland.
“Even though we haven’t been able to win, the girls [and I] have been working hard on different dynamics on the field and being able to read the ball. Throughout the season I can see the instant improvements we have made as the team grows. I’m proud of the girls and excited for our future,” said junior Wren Ontjes.
Volleyball
Recap by Cienna Richardson
The Vikings volleyball program is gearing up for another campaign against strong league and nonleague competition.
“We have a full schedule against constantly improving league foes as well as challenging nonleague opponents. Highlights this year are an early season trip to the Yakima SunDome to compete against 32 of the state’s best teams. Later we will travel to the Olympic Peninsula to play Forks High School and then Neah Bay High School on the Makah Reservation. But don’t miss any of our home matches. They are always exciting and your support means a lot to the girls,” head coach Mallory Balcomb said.
This year’s roster features 31 athletes, including five seniors — Maria Burns, Emily Ibarra, Sophia Mahoney-Jauregui, Vera Sasan and Katie Spinogatti — who will represent the Blue and White for the final time.
“We have a good mix of veterans and younger players. This team has a strong work ethic, high potential and a good team culture. What we lack in overall height we more than make up for in athleticism and grit,” Balcomb said.
The Vikings are led by Balcomb, now in her third season as head coach, with first-year assistant Nicole Hawley joining the staff. Volunteer coaches Lisa Rios, Katie Spinner and Hank Date also support the program.
The Vikings opened their season with a home game against Darrington on Sept. 9.
“Even though it was a tough game, I’m really proud of how well our team played and look forward to the next games,” senior Katie Spinogatti said. The final score was 3-0 in favor of Darrington.
On Sept. 11, the team traveled to Yakima to play in the SunDome Tournament.
“The SunDome tournament is always so fun. I’m so grateful we got the opportunity to go and compete. For only our second time playing as a team we did really good at this tournament. Definitely saw improvement from our first game against Darrington. I’m really excited to see what we can do with our season and have so much fun. I love my team and can’t wait for our next game,” senior Sofia Mahoney-Jauregui said.
The Vikings played three matches in the tournament, dropping two to King’s and Warden by 2-0 scores, and beating Pateros 2-0 in their final match.
“I really enjoyed playing and watching my team at the games this week. The energy was great, the plays were exciting to watch, and it felt great to cheer for our team,” Spinogatti said.
On Sept. 16, the volleyball team traveled to play Mount Vernon Christian and with a score of 1-3 sets. The following Wednesday they played Blaine at home
“The game against Blaine was unforgettable!” said senior Maria Burns about their victorious 3-1 win.
Added senior Vera Sasan: “We had a great match up with Blaine and we pulled off a win. Our team is young but we are very passionate and excited for the season.”
On Sept. 20, the Lady Vikings played a hard game against Northwest Christian with a final score of 3-0.
Cross-country
By Darrell Kirk
The Orcas Island High School cross country team proved that size doesn’t determine success, winning first place as a team in the JV Boys 3 division at a meet hosted by Sehome on Sept. 13.
Competing against 148 runners from schools including Shorewood, Bothell, King’s, Seattle Prep, and Monroe, the Vikings took several of the top spots despite being one of the smallest teams with just seven athletes.
“We did really well as a team,” said Coach Matthew Tong. “These guys ran their butts off. Everybody ran under 13. The whole team.”
The team’s success stems from the unique advantages of their small-island environment.
“Having a small team is really beneficial in this sort of sport, especially when we’re all so together in our fitness levels and in our goals,” explained runner Kai Gilliam.
Individual performances were impressive across the board. Kai Park, whose father Dennis Park is a new science teacher at the school, finished fourth after strategically studying the course beforehand.
Drew Nunez, a sophomore running in his second year, battled through the challenging course to claim 10th place.
“As a sophomore, this is my second time running this race. This hill is just killer and insane. The lactic acid in my legs was building up, but I still pushed through. I was huffing and puffing at the end, but I got 10th place, so I’m pretty proud of that,” Nunez said.
Gabriel Chapman finished 17th out of 148 runners, while Tom Malo overcame injury concerns to finish 19th.
Chapman reflected on the challenging competition: “It was such a difficult race with so many people, and the competition can be so steep. I believe the whole team put in tremendous work, and I can’t wait for the next race.”
When asked about what changed for him this year as an upperclassman, Chapman replied: “Coming in as an upperclassman now, competing against all the underclassmen, it feels like a different animal. You have people looking at you and trying to get you in the race, so you have to look out more for people trying to pass you and take you down.”
Max Peterson contributed to the team’s success with a strong finish in an earlier race. Team member Hugh Kirk attended the meet to support his teammates despite being sidelined with an injury.
Tong also highlighted the advantages of coaching a small team: “Having a small team makes coaching much easier because there’s a lot of ability to do one-on-one time. The students and athletes are bonding on a deeper level and motivating each other. They do a lot of the work themselves, and we just guide them and support them to help them achieve what they want to achieve, which is incredible.”
Coach Christopher Barry added his praise for the team’s performance, highlighting the camaraderie.
“I can’t be prouder of these guys for showing the grit and determination to get out there and get it done,” he said.
Head Coach Sarah Gully, in her first year coaching on Orcas Island and coming from a small-town background, emphasized what makes Orcas Island special.
“What’s different here is that the support is so strong. Coach Christopher and I have talked about how accepting it is immediately. As soon as you’re part of the island, it’s as if the whole island is with you. It’s been awesome, and it happened so fast,” she said.
In their second meet of the season, the Vikings competed at the 46th Carl Westling Invitational on Sept. 20 at South Whidbey. In the 5,000-meter Junior Varsity race, Kai Park recorded the team’s best finish, placing 24th overall with a time of 19:14.93. Kai Gilliam followed in 52nd, with Drew Nunez and Hugh Kirk also posting strong efforts for the Vikings.
The team travels to Shoreline on Friday, Sept. 27, for the 18th King’s Cross Invite, a key mid-season meet featuring strong regional competition.
