The Mariners’ boys varsity soccer team put up a solid defense on Saturday against Eagle River, holding the line and ending the game with a 1-1 tie.

Quinn Alward, a junior, scored the only goal for the Mariners, assisted by freshman Charles Rohr.

The team brought every ounce of determination and energy they had to the game, despite still being exhausted from their match against Wasilla the night before. That game also ended in a tie with a final score of 3-3.

“We left a lot on the field Friday night,” Coach Warren Waldorf said. “When you have to play twenty hours later there’s not enough time to recover.”

Despite the ties, the team is not discouraged. Still early in the season, the team is experimenting with its lineup.  

These early matches do not determine the teams seating in the Region 3 Tournament at the end of May. This provides the Mariners with time to move players around and work out their strategies for the season.

“There are three more games to experiment …  so we just keep moving players around till we find what fits,” Waldorf said.

On Tuesday, the Mariners’ match against Kenai Central ended in a 0-0 tie, continuing the tie trend. 

Thanks to goalie Eric Hill, a senior, Kenai Central was unable to score a single point, earning the team its first shutout of the season. 

The Mariners’ next soccer match will be hosted by Palmer on Friday at 7 p.m., followed by a game hosted by Colony on Saturday at 3 p.m.

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It took them awhile to get there, but the Kenai Central girls soccer team notched a 3-0 triumph over Northern Lights Conference opponent Homer on Tuesday afternoon at Ed Hollier Field, improving to 4-0 to start the season.

Homer dropped to 1-5-1 after the game, which did not count for the NLC Southern Division standings.

Fermin Martinez is a freelance writer who lives in Homer. Joey Klecka contributed to this story.