Four games into the Pirates football season, and things aren’t looking up. Each game has resulted in a loss. Against Forks, the team lost 26-42, against Cedar Park Christian 24-34, against Mt. Douglas High School 12-49, and against Klahowya 14-35.
The team is aware that they aren’t doing too well.
“The team isn’t working well yet… We need work,” said JV quarterback sophomore Grady Earle. “In football, people are sprinting on and off the whole time, instead of a constant effort.”
It is harder to get into shape for football than in other sports, which might be part of the reason for the team’s slow start.
“The biggest advantage the other team had was their size,” said Earle. “They were a lot bigger than us.”
However, genetics aren’t everything; a good football player needs to have the discipline to practice and learn the playbook.
There is no shortage of athletic players, however. The team is above the league average for rushing yards per game, due to the success of the Hoisington brothers, junior Connor Hoisington and senior Bryce Hoisington. The passing attack is led by Connor Hoisington, with his brother as the main receiving target. The defense is also led by those two, but important players also include sophomore Sol Dehnert, junior Cody Whitman, sophomore Joe Ghigleri, and sophomore Will Hennessy.
In the 2015-16 season, the team won four of the five home games, with an unfortunate loss on Homecoming. However, they lost all of their away games, and ended the season with a 4-6 record. The team seemed to be fairly strong and versatile throughout most of the season, winning several defensive struggles such as a 12-7 victory against Forks, and a 70-31 win against Coupeville.
This year, however, the team hasn’t got much going. Their smallest point differentials have been 10 points in favor of the other team, and the lack of wins at home is discouraging to say the least. Compared to last year our team doesn’t look promising. Over the summer we lost 19 seniors to graduation and key players such as Adrian Saint-Germain to injury. This is mainly the reason for our lack of production this year.
So far, the Vashon Pirates football team seems to need quite a bit more work to start winning games, but it is not implausible that this could start happening soon. After all, being underestimated can be a large advantage, especially in a sport that requires as much concentration as football.