Tacoma Semi-Pro Indoor Soccer: Stars Reserves Advance to WISL Championship

Tacoma Stars Reserves vs. Bellingham United FC
Saturday, March 7 | Tacoma Soccer Center | 7 p.m. kickoff
TICKETS: $10 IN ADVANCE, AVAILABLE UNTIL 3 P.M. ON GAME DAY 

The Tacoma Stars Reserves and Bellingham United are headed to the Western Indoor Soccer League (WISL) championship.

Last weekend, the semiprofessional indoor club from Tacoma defeated South Sound FC of Gig Harbor, 7-3, in the semifinals.

“We knew South Sound was going to be strong coming into it, especially toward the end. Tonight, it was just about working hard. Individually and maybe tactically, we felt like we had an edge, but it all came down to outworking them,” Stars Reserves head coach Skyler Roehr said. “For a lot of those quarters, we did, and it showed as we went. The fitness really started to kick in in the third and fourth, and as we grew that gap, the game was firmly in our control.”

Tacoma pulled away for a decisive 7-3 win with a strong first half and an explosive fourth quarter. The Stars Reserves jumped out early with goals from Andres Zuluaga and Diego Hernandez before South Sound’s Collin Labranche cut the deficit to 2-1 late in the first period. After a quiet second, Tacoma extended its lead in the third on a goal from Gil De La Luz, though South Sound stayed within reach with a power-play goal from Craig Johnson. Tacoma answered with a power-play strike from Josh Szidik to make it 4-2 heading into the final frame.

In the fourth, Tacoma took control. AJ Nitzel scored twice, and Rainier Schlekewey added a goal and multiple assists as the lead grew to 7-2. South Sound managed a late power-play goal from Ryan Griffith, but it was not enough as Tacoma secured the win.

For the second straight year, the Stars Reserves will face Bellingham United FC in the WISL finals.

Bellingham reached the championship with a dominant 8-0 shutout of Everett City FC. The visitors struck early, with Joar Tidblom scoring twice off assists from Richard Henderson in the first period. The lead grew in the second with goals from Christian Caro, Tidblom and Judah Straight, giving Bellingham a 5-0 halftime advantage.

The pressure continued in the second half as Caro added his second goal in the third, while Miles Tennant and Edward Longhurst each scored in the fourth. Tidblom finished with a hat trick, and Henderson recorded multiple assists. Everett registered 14 shots in the first period but failed to convert and finished with 14 total shots, compared with Bellingham’s 20.

The WISL finals will be played March 7 at either the Tacoma Soccer Center or the ShoWare Center in Kent. Game time is to be announced.

Tacoma and its coach are looking forward to another final.

“For us, it’s about keeping their highs as low as we can, and when they’re low, hitting them as hard as we can,” Roehr said. “It’s great to find ourselves in a final again. Early in the season, people saw some losses and thought things were different with the coaching and personnel changes. But it’s nice to see the group come together. Here we are in the same spot we always are, in the final, and that’s enough motivation to go out and try to win it.”

Bellingham United head coach Richard Henderson added his thoughts on the finals.

“It’s amazing to make the final. In some ways, it feels like it gets harder each year. For a small group of us, this will actually be our 10th final, and the fact that we’ve been able to build teams and rebuild teams again and again is something really special.

We had a strong regular season and feel like we’re playing some of our best football going into the playoffs. Club-wide we’re somewhat location locked, and many of the other teams share players across squads. When you look at some of the resources other clubs have had over the years, it’s a real testament to everyone past and present that we’ve consistently been up there competing at the top,” Henderson said.