F E D E R A L WAY
SPORTS
[10] January 17, 2014
Federal way national LIttle League Now registering for spring Federal Way National Little League is conducting online registration for the Spring 2014 season. The link for registration can be found at www.eteamz. com/fwnll/. This will be the primary way to register this year. In addition, FWNLL will be conducting in-person registrations at the Federal Way Regional Library from 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 18 and from 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 25, and for a third time at the Federal Way National Little League Complex from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Feb 1.
www.federalwaymirror.com
Sounders FC signs Beamer grad By CASEY OLSON sports@fedwaymirror.com
T
he hometown Seattle Sounders FC have added another Federal Way school district graduate to its roster. The Sounders announced last week that they have inked Todd Beamer High School grad Sean Okoli to a Homegrown Player contract. Per Major League Soccer and club policy, terms were not disclosed. Seattle has now signed three Homegrown Players in the past two seasons. The Sounders also signed Aaron Kovar on Jan. 8. Kovar played at Seattle’s Garfield High School and Stanford University and was a teammate of Okoli’s on Sounders FC Academy teams throughout the years. “It’s exciting to have two more Academy kids join our team,” said Sounders FC Head Coach Sigi Schmid. “Being able to add two young and talented players is a good thing. It’s also very
important that Academy kids can see a pathway onto the first team.” After graduating from Beamer in 2011, Okoli spent three seasons playing at Wake Forest University in North Carolina. During his career with the Demon Deacons, Okoli scored 24 goals and had nine assists in 61 appearances. He earned First Team All-Atlantic Coast Conference honors in 2013, registering a teamhigh nine goals with three assists. In 2012, Okoli led the team with a career high 11 goals, and was named Second Team All-ACC and earned NSCAA Player of the Week honors in October. In his first collegiate season, he finished third on the team with 11 points (four goals and three assists) and was named to the All-ACC Freshman Team in 2011. “I’ve been waiting for this moment for a long time,”
said Okoli. “I can’t wait to play at CenturyLink in front of all of the fans. I am excited to help the team win games, score goals and really get my career started.” During his senior season at Beamer, Okoli, 20, scored 19 goals and dished out 14 assists. After playing for the Sounders FC Academy, he joined the Sounders U-23 team in 2012, where he played for two seasons. Okoli has also played for the United States at the youth levels. Kovar and Okoli were the first Sounders FC Academy players to appear in a MLS Reserve League game for Sounders FC. Kovar played the final nine minutes and Okoli played the final 12 minutes in a 2-1 win over the Portland Timbers on May 30, 2011. “It is a proud moment when players that have significant history in the Sounders programming sign with the first team,”
The Seattle Sounders FC recently added Todd Beamer High School grad Sean Okoli to its roster. contributed photo said Darren Sawatsky, a Jefferson grad and the Sounders U-23 Head Coach and Sounders FC Director of Youth Development. “After watching them both
play last summer with the Sounders U23’s and then this fall in college, it is exciting to see them take the next step.”
Four Federal Way high schools to play in same 4A division By CASEY OLSON sports@fedwaymirror.com
Everything seems to point toward all four Federal Way high schools playing in the same division of the South Puget Sound
League (SPSL) in the fall. The athletic directors at the current SPSL schools have already voted in favor of realigning the two Class 4A divisions, with Federal Way, Beamer and Decatur
joining Thomas Jefferson in the SPSL North. The league’s principals will vote on the proposal at their next meeting, which has been delayed to next month, according to Vince
Blauser, the executive director of secondary schools in Federal Way. “It’s just logistics,” he said. “It was just getting everyone together. I hope it’s just a formality. It’s now
in the principals’ hands. But we are definitely moving in that direction.” The new 10-team Class 4A North Division is set to include the four Federal [ more SPSL, page 11 ]
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