Jesse De Leon lit the Evergreen Pavilion on fire with his boots on Saturday night. Meanwhile up at the Snohomish Soccer Dome Mark Pollack was busy rejecting shots as his club moved one match closer to winning the regular season. Both are honored as the Western Indoor Soccer League (WISL) Players of the Week for February 6, 2016.
See all previous Players of the Week in the POTW category.
OFFENSE – Jesse De Leon, Vancouver Victory
Jesse De Leon set a WISL record for goals scored in a single match with 6 as Vancouver won at Oly Town 13-6. The previous high was 5 goals scored by Derek Johnson of the Tacoma Stars Reserves last season.
“It felt great to score that many goals for the team especially because it was our first win and it was an away game,” says Jesse. “I always love scoring at our opponents’ home turf, but I couldn’t have done it without my teammates.”
De Leon scored a hat trick in each half, including staking his side to a crucial early lead by scoring Vancouver’s first 3 goals of the match.
“The goals wouldn’t have happened if it wasn’t for the team playing amazing balls over the top and giving perfect crosses to my feet so it would be easier for me to finish them,” says De Leon. “I would say that was one of our better games and the ball movement helped create a lot of space for me to take shots on target and that’s what I did and it worked out well.”
DEFENSE – Mark Pollack, Bellingham United
The Hammers are 8-1 and if they can beat the Tacoma Stars Reserves on Saturday at the Bellingham Sportsplex they wil clinch the regular season WISL title and secure home pitch throughout the playoffs. They got to that point by taking a 7-3 win over the Snohomish Skyhawks at the Soccer Dome in a match where goalkeeper Mark Pollack denied the home side time and again.
Fronted by a stout Hammers defensive unit Pollack was able to limit the Skyhawks to two goals in the first half and just a single tally in the second half.
The Hammers are the highest scoring team in the WISL, but Pollack’s performance reminds everyone that the BUFC defense is solid as well.
It was 4-3 in favor of United in the 4th quarter when Pollack and his penalty killers held off a Skyhawks power play.
Western Indoor Soccer League 