Story and photos by Tracy Burrows
Reporting for West Seattle Blog

Saturday night at Nino Cantu Southwest Athletic Complex, the Chief Sealth International High School boys’ soccer team suffered a heartbreaking district-tournament loss to Tukwila’s Foster High School, falling in a dramatic penalty-kick shootout, 1-1 (3-1).

With a berth in the state-championship tournament on the line, both teams played with passion, intensity and grit. Sealth struck early in the first half when Seijiro Azinger netted a quick goal, giving the Seahawks a 1-0 lead they held for most of the game. Controlling possession and dictating the pace, Sealth looked poised to close it out. But despite dominating the run of play, the team couldn’t capitalize on its scoring opportunities and it came back to haunt them.

Late in the second half, the game took a stunning turn. The referee called a rarely enforced violation on the Sealth goalkeeper for holding the ball longer than six seconds — violating the so-called “six-second rule,” which requires the ball to be put back in play promptly. The call awarded Foster an indirect free kick from where the goalie had been holding the ball — in this case from point-blank range. The Foster players crowded on the goal line and managed to tip in the kick, leveling the score at 1-1.

Neither team could break the deadlock through two tense five-minute overtime periods, sending the match to penalty kicks. There, Foster’s goalkeeper emerged as the hero, making three crucial saves. Sealth managed just one conversion as Foster claimed the shootout 3-1.

The final whistle triggered an outpouring of emotion. Several Sealth players collapsed on the turf, devastated by the sudden end to a hard-fought season. It was a cruel reminder of soccer’s unforgiving nature — where a single call, a missed chance, or a brilliant save can change everything.