The Olympian’s 2021 All-Area girls soccer player of the year was explosive in the net

Eva Wirth finished second in the discus at the recent Class 4A South Puget Sound League championship track meet and eighth in the shot put.

Those aren’t events most would associate with a moonlighting soccer player turning out for the Olympia High School track team. Running might seem a better fit.

But, to Wirth, an aspiring chemist, the connection to her duties as the Bears’ soccer goalkeeper was obvious — explosion.

“Explosiveness is the key in the shot and discus, people think it’s upper body, but it comes from the legs,” said Wirth, a senior who will attend Pacific Lutheran University in the fall on an Army ROTC scholarship and major in chemistry.

“As a goalie, everything you do requires explosiveness — diving to make a save, throwing.”

Wirth exploded on the South Sound girls’ soccer scene during the spring 2021 season, after a regimen of early morning runs and soccer training with her dad, Bruce, during the long break imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Kept from a starting position in goal the past two seasons by the presence of Olympia’s two-time All-Area selection Lyric Tinnel, she made the most of her one year as the Bears’ top keeper, recording seven shutouts, including one of defending 4A state champion Puyallup.

The result was a 3A South Sound Conference championship — the Bears temporarily switched leagues due to pandemic restrictions — and The Olympian’s spring 2021 All-Area girls soccer player of the year honors for Wirth.

“She’s an incredible goalkeeper,” said Olympia coach Tamara Liska, who played in the net during her college career. “She’s a fantastic athlete, but she’s also composed. She’s just a nice welcoming kid. The other players look up to her not just as an athlete but as a person.”

Wirth hasn’t let Tinnel’s presence slow her development and readiness.

“She’s improved her anticipation, her ability to distribute the ball, but the biggest thing is her confidence,” Liska said. “She may not even be aware of it herself, but the more you improve, it turns exponential. You gain more confidence, so you can grow even more.”

A varied background in the sport brought Wirth to her current level of success.

Born in Wisconsin, she was living in Olympia when she was 5 and Bruce was deployed to Iraq with the Army. Her mom, Sherry, signed Eva and her two siblings up for soccer and she immediately took to it, though not for specific reasons.

“I loved it,” she remembered. “But when you’re 5, you really are just playing. I liked being outside and it was fun.”

When the family followed Bruce for a year of another deployment, to Korea, Wirth got a chance to see multiple coaching philosophies simultaneously.

“I played with a team on the base, with American coaches, and off the base in a league with Koreans and Americans,” she said. “The Korean coaches put a higher emphasis on physical training and fundamental skill development.”

When she returned to Olympia and her usual team, Black Hills Football Club, she discovered her true calling — goalkeeping.

“I love being the only one standing between the opponent and the goal,” she said.

Fortunately, Liska said, she’s as adept at directing her defensive teammates as she is repelling one-on-one threats.

“Eva can be a quiet kid, but she has an incredible ability to control the situation on the field,” Liska said. “She’s a communicator.”

Combining Wirth with 2018 Olympian All-Area player of the year Landry McCann, and two other college-bound All-Area picks in teammates Grace Wilhelm and Callie Barnett, resulted in a six-goal season for all of the Bears’ opponents put together. Three came in a February loss to Sumner and only one, by Rogers in a 4-1 Olympia victory, came against a team with more than two losses this season.

“They have such a wonderful rapport with each other,” Liska said. “It’s been a fun group to see develop over the past few years.”

Wirth seems sure to have a busy collegiate experience, with soccer and a three-year ROTC commitment. After, her plans are already laid. She’ll have earned a commission into the military, where she may wind up a chemist, but dreams of becoming an Army pilot.

“She’s just a great kid,” Liska said. “I’m excited to see what her future holds.”

PAST OLYMPIAN ALL-AREA GIRLS SOCCER PLAYERS OF THE YEAR

2000 — Michelle Sanders, Centralia

2005 — Fran Janny and Rachel Janny, Olympia

2008 — Kelsey Fuik, Olympia

2009 — Lexy Fancher, Black Hills

2010 — Katie Bergquist, Tumwater

2011 — Lexi Fesenbek, Olympia

2012 — Olivia Brock, Olympia

2013 — Whitney Lowe, Black Hills

2014 — Megan Spataro, Olympia

2015 — Joslin Lindsay, Black Hills

2016 — Jenna Killman, Olympia

2017 — Sydney Lowe, Black Hills

2018 — Landry McCann, Olympia

2019 — Hallie Bergford, Tumwater

This story was originally published May 13, 2021 at 5:00 AM.