The Storm have avoided a state championship hangover.
Squalicum bested in-city rival Bellingham 2-0 at home in a non-league contest Saturday afternoon, netting both goals just seven minutes apart in the first half en route to a shutout of the Bayhawks.
The win broke Squalicum’s stretch of two consecutive draws, keeping the defending 2A state champions without a loss since May 14, 2022 — a 2-0 defeat to Burlington-Edison in last year’s district title game.
First-year Squalicum coach Jose Rodriguez said it felt good to get back in the win column after playing Class 3A schools the last three matches. Rodriguez, who has been an assistant with the team since 2006, swapped positions this season with three-time state champion Storm coach Joe McAuliffe.
“We were starting to kind of veer off of the things that had given us some success, but at the same time we’ve been playing some quality opponents,” Rodriguez said. “We’ve had some good tests, and overall the boys have responded.”
Squalicum returned just three full-time starters from last year’s team which featured nine seniors. The fresh legs have been up to the challenge.
“The boys know that we’ve had a quality program for a while, and they know that they need to bring it every game,” Rodriguez said. “That example that those guys left last year has kind of been ingrained in them, and they haven’t missed a beat.”
Bellingham goalie Julian Czopp finds the ball out of reach as Squalicum scores a goal.
(Andy Bronson/Cascadia Daily News)
Bellingham graduated 14 seniors at the end of last season and has just six rostered this year. Bayhawks coach Spencer Wolfe said it was clear his team had some nerves to work through in the first half of the match.
“We have a project going on here,” Wolfe said. “We have a lot of talent on our team, we just have to keep getting the confidence up and start scoring some goals.”
Junior forward Simon Egner got Squalicum on the board in the 22nd minute, netting a strike that traveled across the face of the goal and into the lower right corner.
The Storm maintained their offensive pressure — outshooting the Bayhawks 8-2 in the first half — and sophomore midfielder Sebastian Cruz Gonzalez buried a perfect 20-yard pass from senior defender Kieran Flaherty in the 29th minute to give Squalicum its daunting advantage.
Squalicum senior goalkeeper Rajangad Powar didn’t see much work in the first half, but he was called into action late in the second when Bellingham entered must-score territory.
The Bayhawks managed to rifle off five shots on goal in the second half, two of which came within a span of 10 seconds near the very end of the match. Both were masterfully denied by Powar, who finished the game with five saves.
Squalicum’s Sebastian Cruz Gonzalez cheers after scoring the Storm’s second goal.
(Andy Bronson/Cascadia Daily News)
The second-year starter has a business-like mentality in the goal.
“Honestly, I don’t really think about it too much — if it comes my way, it comes my way and I’ll do what I need to do,” Powar said. “It’s part of the job description.”
Rodriguez heaped praise on his keeper’s abilities, and noted his returning presence from a year ago has been vital to the team’s success.
“He was the main reason we were able to win that state championship [last year], but also the semifinal game,” Rodriguez said. “It’s just carried over from last year. He’s very confident and he knows where to be and, as you saw, he’s making some great saves.”
Bellingham junior goalkeeper Julian Czopp saved five of the Storm’s 14 total shots on goal. The Bayhawks finished the game with seven total shots but were met by the sure hands of Powar all game.
Squalicum moved to 3-0-3 on the season (0-0-1 Northwest Conference) as the Storm enter their full league schedule. They will travel to Oak Harbor (2-1-2, 1-1-1 NWC) at 7 p.m. Monday, March 27.
Bellingham dropped to 2-3 overall (1-0 NWC), snapping the Bayhawks’ two-game win streak. They will also be on the road March 27 for a date with Anacortes (1-1-2, 0-0-1 NWC) at 7 p.m.
