New Seattle Sounders player has deep Tri-Cities soccer connections

Anyone familiar with the history of the Tri-City soccer scene knows the last name Atencio.

Tim Atencio was a coach for 35 years in the Three Rivers system.

He and his wife, OkSu, raised six kids in Richland — some became outstanding players.

Three sons, Matt, Andres and Cristian, all played collegiately.

Their daughter Cynthia was a member of the Richland Bombers’ state championship team in 1999, led by Hope Solo. Cynthia went on to Arizona State University, where she became a national-caliber runner for the Sun Devils’ track team.

Their eldest, Claudine, and youngest, Greg, also displayed great sports skills.

So there is a lot of outstanding athletic talent in this family, especially in soccer.

But it took one of Tim Atencio’s 13 grandchildren to take it to another level.

Josh Atencio, Andres’ son, signed a Homegrown Player contract with Major League Soccer’s Seattle Sounders FC on June 15.

It means that Josh Atencio, just 18, is now a member of the big club and will be in Orlando with the Sounders when they begin play in the MLS is Back Tournament in July.

“It’s unbelievable, and we’re all very happy,” said Tim Atencio.

Josh Atencio is a 6-foot-1, 174-pound, midfielder. That’s pretty much what all the Atencio’s played.

“Cynthia, Matt, Cristian, we were all midfielders,” said Andres. “We were great passers. You have to mix it up, get in there and win a lot of balls.”

Andres, who is a real estate broker in the Bellevue area, likens his son’s game as gritty and tough.

“I’d say he’s the type of player who doesn’t always jump off of the screen at you,” said Andres. “He’s not the flashiest player. But he’s always in motion, and he does a lot of the dirty work that needs to be done as a midfielder. That’s the kind of guy you know your teammates respect.”

Andres said he had the same parental concerns about Josh’s game as the youngster was 10 or 11.

“Honestly, I felt as a parent that I was just so worried about him. His coaches liked his play. But it’s hard to see the big picture sometimes,” said Andres. “The big question back then was, is he gonna be an A team player.”

Josh was, and he starred for the Crossfire Premier program based in Redmond.

“Crossfire was the biggest thing around,” Andres said. “But we hadn’t talked to the Sounders at all. Then Josh told me he’d like to play for their academy.”

Atencio made the call.

“They said, ‘We’ve been waiting for you to call. We know who Josh is,’” said Andres. “The first year (Josh was 14 at the time), he was playing two years up.”

U.S. soccer program

Then the United States soccer program started calling, putting him in its age-specific player pool.

“I started thinking, ‘Is he this good?’” said Andres. “Then he started getting into national team stuff. And I thought ‘He must be that good.’”

It takes a special player to become a member of the Sounders academy. Pasco’s Edwin Aquino, a midfielder, did it for a year before going to Seattle University, where he just completed his freshman year.

There is a lot to give up — time with your classmates at a normal high school; school activities and other sports, etc.

But the trade off is playing the sport you love.

Josh Atencio began his high school career at Newport High in Bellevue.

“His freshman year, he missed 70 days of classes when he got a call-up to the national team,” said Andres. “His sophomore year, he was missing a lot of days, and the school wasn’t happy.”

“So junior year he transitioned to online school, and was in Running Start. It’s not a normal high school life at all. Fortunately, he had friends at Newport who knew he had soccer commitments.”

By August 2018, at the age of 16, Josh signed a pro contract to play for the Sounders FC 2 club — the parent club’s minor-league, or USL Championship, team.

In 2019, that team moved down to Tacoma, becoming the Tacoma Defiance. That season, Atencio had 23 starts at midfielder, played in 25 matches.

He was also a Defiance team captain at the age of 17.

The 2019-20 school year is his senior year of high school.

Soccer athlete ranking

College Soccer News considers Josh the fifth-ranked player among all soccer athletes in the nation whose graduation year is 2020.

Joining Atencio on June 15 in signing with the Sounders was academy teammate and midfielder Ethan Dobbelaere.

“Josh and Ethan are good younger players who have performed well in training with the first team when given the chance,” said Sounders FC head coach Brian Schmetzer. “I look forward to bringing them more into the fold and continuing to see them develop as professionals.”

Atencio had spent the last three preseasons with the Sounders.

“It means so much,” said Josh in a Sounders news release. “The thought process with signing with (Seattle Sounders 2 in 2016) in the first place is that I love the club, and love everything that the club has done for me.”

Josh is considered strong as a defender, but he can attack on offense. He will be considered by the Sounders as a straight midfielder, but also at center back.

He’s tough but smart when it comes to defense, averaging a foul only every other game last season at Tacoma.

Grandpa Tim is so proud, said Andres.

“He’s the one that got us all started in soccer,” said Andres. “I think he coached us all (kids) at one point.”

Family love for the sport

That started a family love for the sport.

“I’ve coached them all,” said Tim of his six children. “But the grandkids started growing up on the west side of the state, and I’m more of a spectator now.”

He loves what he sees in his grandson’s play.

“In retrospect, you look at my family and how competitive my kids were, whether in sports or within themselves,” said Tim. “They were so competitive. My grandson has that very same trait.

“Playing midfielder, it’s knowing the game, and playing the game,” he continued. “Knowing the placement of the ball and where it goes. Cynthia was like that. Hope Solo was the star athlete (at Richland High, scoring numerous goals as a forward before becoming a world-caliber keeper). There’s a reason she was. The ball would get out to her a lot from Cynthia. You need to be fearless. I see that fearlessness in Josh. I see that trait.”

Atencio’s family will be watching when the tournament begins July 8 in Orlando.

The Sounders have three pool-play games: vs. the San Jose Earthquakes at 7:30 p.m. on July 10; against FC Dallas at 6 a.m., on July 15; and vs. the Vancouver Whitecaps at 7:30 p.m., on July 20.

All times are Pacific, and the first two matches will be televised on ESPN and ESPN Deportes.

And Grandpa Tim will be leading the cheering section for Josh.

“We’re in a green wave now!” he said.

This story was originally published June 27, 2020 at 2:11 PM.