Williams having huge season for Evergreen

SANDPOINT — In what should come as little surprise to anyone who ever saw him play as a member of the Sandpoint boys soccer team, Evergreen State College junior forward Tanner Williams is tearing up the league this season.

Williams, who scored three goals and dished out five assists earlier in the season to earn Cascade Collegiate Conference Player of the Week honors, has started 15 games for the Geoducks (12-3-1) and tallied nine goals and 12 assists.

He is currently third in the 14 team CCC in points with 30, and is second in the conference in assists, playing a huge role in his team’s success while basically running the attack.

Williams was one of the top players in Idaho for a few years, competing on a handful of national-level teams in the process, before moving on to play at Concordia University. He transferred to Evergreen State College, and is now arguably the team’s best player.

“Tanner was tireless and selfless this weekend and has been throughout the season,” Evergreen men’s soccer head coach John Purtteman said. “He has a great soccer IQ and understands how to break down defenses with combination play and individual action. He is especially dangerous because he is equally content to serve as a provider or as a finisher.”

Williams, an all-conference second team pick in 2014, and the Geoducks lost 2-0 to NAIA power Corbin in the most recent game, dropping into fourth in the CCC standings with a 9-3-1 league record.

The Geoducks kick off the CCC tournament on Nov. 11 when they face Carroll College, which won 2-0 in the first meeting, in the tourney opener in Springfield, Ore.