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Ukrainian teens find solace in soccer in VancouverSubscriber Exclusive

Boys whose families fled war become key members of Fort Vancouver High School’s cosmopolitan team

By Meg Wochnick, Columbian staff writer

Published: April 30, 2023, 6:06am

9 Photos

First generation Ukrainian American Denis Zayets, second from left, and Illia Strynada (13), a refugee from Ukraine, warm up with the soccer team before a match against Washougal at Fort Vancouver High School on Thursday, April 13, 2023. (Elayna Yussen for The Columbian) Photo Gallery

As waves of missile strikes hit and Russian forces pounded his hometown of Kyiv, Ukraine, Illia Strynada and his family hastily packed what they could, piled into their vehicle, and frantically searched for a gas station.

Strynada awoke to loud, early-morning explosions on Feb. 24, 2022 — the day Russia invaded Ukraine and unleashed the biggest attack on a European state since World War II. Fourteen months since the war began, the sights and sounds the teenager experienced in the early days of the war are still fresh in his mind sitting inside a Fort Vancouver High School conference room.

“We worried about gas, because the (car) tank wasn’t full,” said Strynada, 18. “The lines were so long to get gas to fill the car.”

Finally, they located one small gas station, then fled their city of 3 million for Western Ukraine. But not before witnessing firsthand the horror all around them.

“The army aircrafts were huddled high in the air,” he said. “It was very scary.”

Strynada’s high school experience differs from most kids. Six months ago, he and his family arrived in Vancouver via stops in Moldova, Belarus and Turkey after fleeing Ukraine. Earlier this school year, he enrolled at Fort Vancouver and is one of two Ukraine refugees on the Trappers’ varsity boys soccer team. The other is Volodymyr Antoniuk, 17, who arrived last spring shortly after the war began. The duo are the team’s leading scorers.

Antoniuk and Strynada miss home. Vancouver is home for now, and being part of the Trappers’ soccer team is a welcoming refuge from the realities of their home country.

They are also happy to be here. Their teammates are happy, too, said senior captain Nelson Zepeda Rincon.

“They have great energy,” the midfielder said. “They want to play soccer and have a really good passion for it. I think we get along really well with them because of that.”

Eastern European influx at Fort

Since March 2022, 70 students from Eastern Europe are newcomers to Fort Vancouver due to the conflict in Ukraine, said Kailey Sears, the school’s English Language Learners’ coordinator. That includes students from Ukraine, Moldova, Belarus as well as Russia.

Vancouver Public Schools’ ELL program serves approximately 3,000 students districtwide, according to VPS. At Fort Vancouver, programs include intensive English development for recent arrivals.

With a significant population of Eastern European students, there’s no tension because of the war, the students said. In fact, there’s a level of support that’s schoolwide, said Svitlana Ostapenko, an advocate who assists students from Eastern European countries.

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“The first weeks (of the war), everybody was in shock,” she said. “The Russian students helped the Ukraine students feel more comfortable when they started arriving.

“We’re all family here.”

Antoniuk, also from Kyiv, knows what it’s like to be part of a large family. He is one of 11 children, many of whom are married with their own families. On the day Russia invaded Ukraine, concerns grew on whether his father would make it home from work.

“We weren’t sure he would be able to cross the river because they started bombing the bridges,” Antoniuk said.

His father made it safely home. That night, all 11 children and their families gathered inside his parents’ home in Kyiv, and decided Western Ukraine was the safest place to be for the time being. Weeks later, Antoniuk and his family came to Vancouver, where extended family members live.

Of the estimated 8 million Ukrainians who have fled their country since the war began, approximately 100,000 have entered the United States, according to the U.N. High Commission for Refugees. Data from the Washington Department of Social and Health Services show about 3,000 have settled in Clark County.

Antoniuk and Strynada balance constant worries for loved ones back home and Ukraine’s future with gratitude for attending school and playing the sport they love a half a world away. The teens are Fort’s leading goal-scorers as starting forwards. Strynada’s cousin, junior Stanislav Horiuk, is a mainstay on defense at center back.

Youth soccer in the United States is similar to how it’s done in Ukraine, said Horiuk, who came to Vancouver from Chernivsti, Ukraine, in 2019. This is his first season playing soccer for Fort, and immediately noticed contrasting coaching styles.

“In Ukraine, they’re strict,” he said. “If you don’t score, you get bullied from coaches. First coaches, then teammates.”

It’s been an adjustment, but also a welcoming one to how second-year Fort soccer coach Juan Mendoza Rodriguez runs his program. In 2022, the Trappers qualified for the state tournament, the program’s first state appearance since 1988. Fort had zero players from Eastern Europe on that team, but hearing the journey and struggles of their current Ukrainian teammates is an eye-opening experience for everyone, Mendoza Rodriguez said.

“That brought everyone together and created that community we need,” the coach said.

One of Mendoza Rodriguez’s largest tasks has been creating a cohesive unit on the field with players from various cultural backgrounds, languages and styles of play. Most players’ first language is Spanish. During games, Mendoza Rodriguez alternates instruction between English and Spanish. Antoniuk, Horiuk and Strynada are learning to master English as part of Fort’s ELL program. They’ve also picked up some Spanish.

But soccer has its own language and they’re all after the same goal: win.

Melting pot on the soccer field

Every pregame, Mendoza Rodriguez meets with players in different position groups to go over strategy and final instructions. Against Washougal on April 13, the coach stressed the forwards, Antoniuk and Strynada, to play together and feed off each other up top. Horiuk also is present as an interpreter.

Just prior to first kick, Mendoza Rodriguez had a quick message for Strynada.

“If you score, make sure you come over here to celebrate,” he said, gesturing to the same side of the field as the team benches.

Strynada smiled and nodded.

Fort hosts Woodland on Tuesday to conclude the regular season. The top five teams from the 2A Greater St. Helens League advance to the postseason.

The second half of the season is when Mendoza Rodriguez saw a boost in how his team works together, and it led to success in the win column. First, a 3-0 victory over R.A. Long on April 17 behind two goals and an assist by Antoniuk. Then, a shootout win over Ridgefield with two goals by Strynada and both assists by Antoniuk sparked three victories over a four-match stretch.

Horiuk admitted he had concerns of how well players of various backgrounds and languages could gel together. Those concerns have melted away.

“We have very good discipline on the team,” he said.

Sophomore forward Denis Zayets is a first-generation Ukrainian American whose family originally is from Ukraine’s capital city. All season, he’s sported a headband of Ukraine’s flag colors during games. He also plays tight end and linebacker on Fort’s football team.

“I want to spread awareness to my people,” Zayets said. “Be strong, stand strong.”

Players on opposing teams take notice and show their support, too. Shouts of “Go Ukraine” is a popular one, the Fort players said.

The teens are proud of their country, and those defending it. For now, Vancouver is home and the soccer team is an extension of their success in school. Antoniuk will graduate in June with an American high school diploma, and hopes for an opportunity to play soccer in college. Strynada and Horiuk will graduate in 2024.

Zepeda Rincon, the soccer team’s senior captain, said the Ukraine players’ “tunnel-vision mindset” and passion to win on the pitch are second to none. They’ve made a big impact not only in soccer, but also within the student body, he said.

“We have a lot of love and embrace for them knowing what’s going on in their country,” Zepeda Rincon said. “I think just supporting them and realizing that they’re here and they’re really happy is good to see.

“We want to make sure they continue to be happy and continue to play soccer here while they can.”

Eastern European influx at Fort

Melting pot on the soccer field

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