Washington State
Legends of Soccer

Curated by the Washington State Legends of Soccer, providing information and history of the Beautiful Game in Washington State. Just as the game evolves, so will this site. We continuously add new content, so be sure to return often.

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Explore our history. Click on any of the panels below to learn what happened that year.
Fans Wait Overnight for Soccer Bowl Tickets
August 26, 1977

Hundreds stand in line for hours in a steady rain to buy 8,500 tickets for Soccer Bowl in Portland. Some queue up immediately after the Sounders' semifinal victory over L.A., stationing themselves at the Kingdome box office window. Many of those able to buy tickets then dash to nearby King Street Station to buy tickets for the day-of-game Amtrak train to Portland.

WIAA Sets Girls Play for Fall
April 25, 1981

The Washington State Interscholastic Activities Association sets the first girls' championship tournament for the fall. Some families express concerns that it may force some players to choose between playing for their school or their club, which traditionally conducts a fall season as well.

Sponsors Step Up to Secure Swedes
May 27, 1951

Five major individual sponsors step up to provide a $2,000 guarantee for Sweden’s AIK to visit Seattle. AIK’s tour will begin on the East Coast, with matches in New York and Massachusetts before moving on to Detroit and then Vancouver and Seattle. Einar Carlson, Axel Thornberg, Ivan Anderson, Austin Gunderson and Barney Kempton are the sponsors for the June 17 friendly versus the state champion Vikings at West Seattle Stadium. AIK was recently relegated from Sweden’s first division, the Allsvenskan.

Mountain View Repeats in AAA Boys
May 30, 1992

Doug Wolvert's state-leading 20th goal of the year is enough for Mountain View to repeat as AAA boys' champion with a 1-0 victory over Richland at Sparks Stadium. Brian Wohlsein's corner kick produces a Wolvert header that goes under Bombers keeper J.P. Reck with 90 seconds left in the first half. Mountain View (18-1) becomes the first AAA team to successfully defend a title since Jefferson won its fourth consecutive title in 1986.

Huskies Nip Cougs in 90th Minute
March 19, 2021

A sensational spring keeps getting better for Washington. A goal with only 18 seconds remaining lifts the 23rd-ranked Huskies over Washington State, 2-1, in an Apple Cup Series home match. The non-conference win makes UW 6-1-2, and it's the second straight win over WSU. Ruby Hellstrom's early strike is canceled out by Makamae Gomera-Stevens in the 73rd minute. Karlee Stueckle's shot from the top of the box finds its way through the keeper's fingers for the winner. Under new coach Nicole Van Dyke, Washington has scored four goals in the 80th minute or later and outscored opponents 9-2 in the second half of games.

Lutes' Abe Honored
December 7, 1972

Pacific Lutheran's diminutive forward, Abraham Abe, is voted player of the year in the Northwest Collegiate Soccer Conference, despite the Lutes finishing a distant third behind Washington and Seattle Pacific. The Falcons' Ken Covell finishes as top scorer with 18 goals and Ward Forrest sets a new UW mark with 14.

Germania and Allemania of the state league pose on match day. Germania's Walter Schmetzer is back row, third from left. (Courtesy Walter Schmetzer)
1962
Scenes from a Western Washington vs. Seattle University women's game. (Courtesy Western Washington archives)
1982
Shannon Lovejoy became Seattle Pacific's first three-time All-American in 2005, helping the Falcons reach their first NCAA championship game. (Courtesy Seattle Pacific Athletics)
2005
(Courtesy The Seattle Times)
1970
The $10M Starfire Sports Complex opened in 2003 in Fort Dent Park. (Courtesy Deacon Corp.)
2003
Hope Solo is named Algarve Cup MVP – the first goalkeeper to win the award.
2009
Marcus Hahnemann exhorts his defense while playing before a hometown crowd for the U.S. National Team. The USMNT defeats Cuba, 3-1, in a Gold Cup match at Qwest Field. (Courtesy Michael Pimentel / ISI Photos)
2005
Chris Henderson (fourth from right) stands during the playing of the national anthem prior to the U.S. Olympic Team's qualifier vs. Canada on May 10, 1992 in Bethlehem, Pa. (Courtesy Tony Quinn/Soccer America)
1992
Then Henderson of Everett: Chris, Dick and Sean (l to r). they combined to lead Cascade to the state AAA championship. (Courtesy Chris Henderson)
1989
In 2019, 17-year-old Alfonso Ocampo-Chavez scored six goals for Tacoma Defiance added another six for Sounders Academy U17s in becoming the first MLS club to win the Generation adidas Cup. Ocampo-Chavez had a hat trick against the West Ham United Academy in the GA semifinal. (Courtesy Tacoma Defiance)
2019