Ceres native Cade Cowell collected his team-leading fourth goal of the Major League Soccer season this past week.
Cowell, 17, scored from close-range off a pass from Cristian Espinoza 15 minutes into the game while contributing at forward in the San Jose Earthquakes’ 2-2 draw against host Minnesota FC Saturday evening.
“It makes me happy to see them progress rapidly,” San Jose head coach Matias Almeyda said while talking about the development of the Earthquakes’ younger players. “When they have 50 appearances with the senior team, I think then they will be ready to execute what I ask from them.”
Cowell has tallied a goal in each of San Jose’s last two matches.
He ranks first on the team in total goals (4) and assists (3).
He’s started nine times and appeared in 12 games.
He’s attempted 22 shots.
“Really, the only thing that’s different is getting more comfortable with playing on the field,” Cowell said when asked what he attributed his success to this year.
Cowell became the third-youngest player to be named MLS Player of the Week following his Week 3 performance. He scored the winning goal and dished out two assists in a 4-1 victory over D.C. United on May 1.
A third-year member of the Earthquakes, Cowell tallied one goal and one assist in 17 appearances a season ago. He attempted 16 shots.
“I continue to surprise myself with something great every year, but it’s not really a surprise,” Cowell said. “I work for this every offseason, so to continue to get better results every year, it’s just motivating me to keep getting better.”
Cowell was named to the United States senior team’s 53-man preliminary roster for this month’s CONCACAF Gold Cup on June 18.
“I found out a day before it was announced to the public, and to see my name with all of those other big-time names, it was very exciting,” Cowell said.
Bates honored
Nicole “Sis” Bates was named the University of Washington’s Pac-12 Tom Hansen Conference Medal recipient for Outstanding Female Student-Athlete on June 23.
Conference medals are awarded annually to each member institution’s top senior male and female student-athletes based on a combination of performance and achievement in scholarship, athletics and leadership.
A fifth-year member of Washington’s softball program and a 2016 graduate of Ceres High School, Bates earned a bachelor’s degree in sociology and a master’s in educational leadership and policy studies with a 3.92 grade-point average.
She was named to the Pac-12 Academic Honor Roll in 2020 and earned Pac-12 All-Academic Honorable Mention in 2019.
She was a 2021 Senior CLASS Award finalist.
She was voted Seattle Female Sports Star of the Year in 2019.
Bates became just the second player in Pac-12 history to win the conference’s Defensive Player of the Year award three times this past season while starring at shortstop.
Bates, a UW grad student, totaled just seven errors dating back to the start of the 2019 campaign, which covered a span of 135 games.
Her career fielding percentage of .980 is the second-highest mark for any middle in Washington history.
Bates became Washington’s all-time hits leader this spring with 320 in 261 career games.
She batted .389 from the plate with one homer, five triples, 12 doubles, 32 RBIs, 55 runs and 21 stolen bases.
She led the Pac-12 in hits with 75.
Bates started the year a perfect 18-for-18 on stolen bases.
Bates batted .385 with nine homers, 18 triples, 54 doubles, 145 RBIs, 227 runs and 49 stolen bases in 261 career games.
She had on-base, slugging and on-base plus slugging percentages of .450, .526 and .976, respectively.
She had a career fielding percentage of .980.
Bates ranks first in triples, third in runs, fourth in batting average and fifth in doubles in program history.
Bates will play professional softball in the Athletes Unlimited League this summer.
She was drafted on May 10.
