BRUSH PRAIRIE — Tristan Glaser and CJ Henry are competing goalkeepers, and their supportive relationship might be best characterized by their friendship off the field.
The Prairie High School seniors, like many teenagers, play the popular online multi-player third-person-shooter video game Fortnite. Glaser would like you to know he’s the better player between the two. But, he admits, Henry also carries the team — sometimes.
Sometimes? “All the time,” Henry interjects. The two laugh.
It’s not the type of relationship that seems befitting of two players who are in a constant battle to take playing time from one another.
If one of them does something embarrassing in the video game, they’re quickly ribbed by the other. It’s a light-hearted, competitive dynamic that shows how on the field, where they have battled for the starting goalkeeper position for the last two seasons, they’ve pushed and supported one another.
“Those guys are like two peas in a pod,” Prairie coach Michael Thyron said. “They’re like twins.”
This season, amid what appeared to be another battle for playing time in the net, on-field contributions have taken an unexpected twist for the goalkeepers who have known each other since they were 10-year-olds running around the soccer field wearing identical, Kurt Rambis-esque Rec-Specs (Henry said he might bring his back for senior night).
Prairie possesses an embarrassment of riches at goalkeeper. But after a string of departures, injuries and eligibility concerns, the Falcons lack a true natural goal-scorer. So, in a varsity-JV scrimmage during the first week of practice, Thyron subbed in Glaser at forward on a whim. He scored two goals.
Add in the emergence of King’s Way transfer goalie Gerrit Cochell, a sophomore, and the goalie duo might be a regular appearance for the Falcons, who will be competing for first in the 3A Greater St. Helens League.
“That kind of opened up Pandora’s Box,” Thyron said. “I can put them at forward positions because they have good speed and are pretty athletic.”
Glaser then figured into the regular rotation up top once the season started. He’s scored two of the team’s four goals so far.
Henry got in the mix, too.
In last week’s 2-1 win over Hockinson, Henry subbed in up top, too. The two played together for 10 minutes, and each scored a goal. Both saw time in the net, too.
“I was a little bit surprised when I scored my first goal,” Henry said. “It really opened my eyes to what I can do up top.”
Neither player had even seen much time at forward at the club level — even at practice. Typically goalkeepers spend large portions of practice training with goalkeeper coaches at the club level.
“I’d seen them in a couple of club games when I was out and about, but never thought it was going to come into play here. It actually has and I’m quite proud of them. They’ve done everything we’ve asked of them.”
Friendship and competition go hand-in-hand for the senior goalkeepers. After befriending each other as young club soccer players, the two fell out of touch until Henry transferred to Prairie from Henrietta Lacks Health & Bioscience High School (HeLa) for his sophomore year.
The two picked up right where they left off.
They share classes, sit together at lunch and even play on the same club soccer team.
So it would stand to reason they would want to carry that friendship into college.
When Glaser committed to NAIA Evergreen State College to play goalkeeper, Henry, who was uncommitted, was contacting college coaches to test interest. With Glaser’s permission, he contacted Evergreen. It was the first school to respond.
The two took their visits together the following week, and before they left, both were committed. Their competition to play keeper in the net would continue after high school.
Evergreen State will have two senior goalkeepers next year, one of which is former Prairie standout Ben Stevenson. After that, it will be Henry and Glaser.
“Only one year with those two then it’s us battling for a spot, so it’s exciting,” Glaser said. “We’re ready for it.”
The two plan to be roommates, too.
In the meantime, the Falcons may be relying on them to not only prevent goals, but score some, too. And they’re up for the challenge.
“We’ve played with each other long enough, so we feed off each other pretty well and know what we’re going to do and we have a pretty good chemistry with each other, so it works,” Glaser said.
