High school referee ejected after cursing at Kitsap soccer player

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Occasionally in high school soccer, fans might witness a player being ejected from a game for directing unkind words toward an official.

An official being removed from a contest after directing profanity toward a player? That occurred in Central Kitsap's season-ending boys soccer playoff loss May 16 against Decatur at Mount Tahoma High School in Tacoma.

In the 68th minute of a scoreless Class 3A West Central District tournament game, Central Kitsap senior forward Myles Peterson fell to the turf in the right corner of the pitch after being run into by a Decatur defender. There was no foul called by the assistant referee. Instead, the referee threw an insult at Peterson, cursing while questioning his playing abilities.

Central Kitsap athletic director Jodie Woolf said both she and Mount Tahoma athletic director Rhonda Stinson, who was serving as site manager on behalf of the West Central District, witnessed the interaction between the referee and player. Woolf said Peterson appeared to raise his hands to question whether a potential foul occurred on the play. The referee responded with comments she described as unprofessional.

"Rhonda and I, we both heard it," Woolf said. "I literally heard it and it took me a second to register just what happened."

As play continued toward midfield, Peterson jogged toward the center referee to alert him of the assistant referee's behavior. Woolf said Stinson conferred with the center referee and the game paused for nearly 10 minutes. Peterson and the rest of Central Kitsap's players gathered on the sidelines near the team's bench to discuss the incident while stadium and game officials discussed how to proceed.

"Genuinely speechless," Central Kitsap head coach Patrick Leonard said regarding his reaction to the assistant referee's comments. "Myles Peterson is an incredible player and captain, but above all that, he's an incredible person. To be verbally abused by a referee is a disgrace."

Leonard made it clear that his team would not retake the field unless the assistant referee was removed from the game. Woolf said a referee assigner quickly arrived at the stadium and made alterations to the officiating crew, removing the assistant referee who'd cursed at Peterson. The game resumed following a 10-minute delay.

"The people in charge did the right thing in the moment and handled it very well," Woolf said.

Central Kitsap eventually lost the game in a shootout, which lasted eight rounds.

This article originally appeared on Kitsap Sun: High school referee ejected after cursing at Kitsap soccer player

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