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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper The Spokesman-Review
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883
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Defense carries East Valley soccer to Final Four

East Valley High School's run to the state 2A soccer tournament this weekend has been lead by their stellar defense, who protect junior goalie Bodee Peres (center, behind). From left, sophomore Kurtis Kannenwischer; senior Tyler Tran; center midfielder senior Jon Merkel (kneeling); senior Miles Rinne; junior Austin Herron. (J. Bart Rayniak)
The opponent in the semifinals of the State 2A boys soccer tournament remains a bit of a mystery to Jeff Paulus. But the familiarity – and confidence – the third-year East Valley coach has with, and in, the veteran defenders on his own team helps ease a lot of the anxiety that stems from the unknown. Up next for surging EV (17-2-1) is a 6 p.m. matchup against Lynden (16-4-1) at Sunset Chev Stadium in Sumner on Friday. While Paulus admits the only info he has about the Lions is what he has read in newspapers, he expects his veteran team to be ready for the challenge, mainly because of a quartet of senior defenders, who have been playing on the varsity since they were freshman. “I sensed coming into the ———————- ———————- season that we would have a great defense, because our starting four defenders for the last three years have been the same starting four defenders,” Paulus said. Those four are Tyler Tran, Miles Rinne, Jacob Fitterer and Jon Merkel, although Fitterer and Merkel were moved to center midfielder positions this spring to give the Knights’ offense an added charge. Tran was named the defensive MVP in the Great Northern League this year and Rinne was a first-team all-GNL defender. Merkel will attend Gonzaga University on an academic scholarship, and Fitterer plans to play with Rinne at Community Colleges of Spokane next fall. The four are part of a six-player senior class that had experienced nothing but postseason disappointment, with the Knights having lost in the first round of the regional playoffs the last three years. But this spring, EV cleared that perplexing regional hurdle by beating GNL rival Medical ———————- ———————- Lake 2-1 in a shootout, and then earning a state tournament berth with a 2-1 win over Pullman. Tran, Rinne, Fitterer and Merkel, along with fellow seniors Matt Mastronardi and ———————- ———————- Andrew Carter, have been at the forefront of this year’s run to the semifinals. “One of our biggest strengths has been their leadership,” Paulus said. “The seniors on this team are the best I’ve ever ———————- ———————- worked with, or even heard of, on a high school soccer team. “They are just the best leaders – on and off the field – that a coach could ask for.” Behind their six seniors, the Knights have put together one of the best defenses in the state, as evidenced by junior goalkeeper Bodee Peres’ remarkable goals-against average of 0.375. “I’d be shocked if that wasn’t the lowest in the state,” Paulus said. “And to take that further, a couple of the goals he did allow came when we were up 8-0 and had moved some of our (defenders) up to forward. “Bodee doesn’t get much credit, because our defense is so solid. But he’s a very, very good goalie.” With Peres operating behind such a veteran group of talented and savvy defenders, EV has shut out 13 opponents and has yet to give up more than one goal in a game. With sophomore forward Adam Talley, who leads the team in scoring with 19 goals and four assists, spearheading the offense, the surging Knights hope to send their senior class out with a state title.