The Press-Dispatch
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E-4 Fall Sports Preview Wednesday, August 16, 2017 The Press-Dispatch The Pike Central High School boys' soccer team will participate in the River City Classic in Evansville on Friday, Aug. 19, and Saturday, Aug. 20, then trav- el to Washington Catholic on Tuesday, Aug. 22. The members of the team are, first row (l to r): Brayden Furman, Garrett Boyd, Gabe Caldwell, Andrew Clark, Jacob Barber, Kaleb Claridge, Connor Gaines, Jacob Vest, Connor Young, Reece Ashley and Sammy Ballard. Second row: Hunter Capehart, Alfredo Stewart, Austin Dixon, Jaden Montgomery, Carson Johnson, Hayden Kabrick, Noah Whann, Austin Holder, Ethan Scott, Coleman Henson, Paxton Knies and Briar Meadors. Third row: Sam Henson, Christian Benson, Tyler Tormohlen, Jersey Mills, Kyson Western, Breyton Booker, Cameron Henson, Tyler Meadors, Gavin Boyd and Quade Claridge. Andy Heuring photo BOYS' SOCCER In any sport, Four Star Fabricators encourages all Pike Central athletes to work hard, play tough and win in life. Four Star Fabricators P.O. Box 67, Petersburg, IN 47567 Serving the Aluminum, Coal and Power Industries with Quality Steel Fabrication Phone: 812-354-9995 Fax: 812-354-3809 www.fourstarfab.com Good Luck This season! 350 W. Main, Petersburg • Next to Double J Collision Call for Carry-Out or Faster Service (812)354-2606 HOURS: Thurs, Fri. and Sat. 5p.m. to 9p.m. • Closed Sunday A FAN FAVORITE Joe Mama's Pizza Pizza • Sandwiches • Salads • Carry-Out Dining Room & Carryout Available! Strong 2017 boys' soccer team stacked with talent By Ed Cahill Press-Dispatch Sports sports@pressdispatch.net The Pike Central High School boys' soc- cer team lost four seniors – Kylan Arndt, Cole Leighty, Jared McCord and Colton White – from last year's squad that won the program's first-ever sectional title and broke the school record for wins while fin- ishing 15 -2-2. White, who scored a school-record 33 goals and dished out 12 assists, and Mc- Cord, who added nine goals and nine as- sists, were both named to the Pocket Ath- letic Conference's All-Conference Team. Arndt, who scored one goal, and Leighty saw most of their action on the defensive end of the field. "We'll definitely miss all the seniors," Chargers head coach Chad Western said. "That was a good group. They played a lot their whole high school career, so we defi- nitely will miss that class." "Some other kids have got to be ready to step up," he added. "We're very strong. This senior class is probably as strong as we've ever had go through Pike. From top to bot- tom, this class is good." This year's team will feature nine seniors – Breyton Booker, Gavin Boyd, cousins Ka- leb and Quade Claridge, Cameron Henson, twin brothers Briar and Tyler Meadors, Ty- ler Tormohlen and Kyson Western – as well as seven juniors – Christian Benson, Aus- tin Dixon, Connor Gaines, Austin Holder, Hayden Kabrick, Jaden Montgomery and Jacob Vest. Eleven sophomores – Jacob Barber, Gabe Caldwell, Andrew Clark, Braydon Furman, Coleman Henson, Sam Henson, Carson Johnson, Paxton Knies, Jersey Mills, Ethan Scott and Noah Whann – and five freshmen – Reece Ashley, Sammy Ballard, Garrett Boyd, Hunter Capehart and Connor Young round out the Chargers' 32-player roster. "Most likely, we'll start nine seniors, but we consider that we've got 14 to 16 starters," Chad Western said. "We're lucky. We've got good kids and we've got talent." Kyson Western – Chad Western's son – was also named to the PAC's All-Conference Team after netting 32 goals – including the lone goal in the 1-0 overtime win over Wash- ington to win the sectional title – and dish- ing out a school-record 27 assists. "His role will be different in different games, different halves, different opponents and how they play him," Chad Western said. "But, you know, we're definitely looking for him to get the ball to his feet and let him see the field, make good decisions out of it." "He's going to have times when he's not going to get any space," Chad Western add- ed. "He's got to make good decisions and find the right guys, and those other guys need to step up, too. He's definitely played a lot of soccer and has a lot of experience, but he's pretty well-known now, too. So we definitely are looking for other options, and we've got some very good players." Kyson Western will often be flanked on the front line by Briar and Tyler Meadors. Last season, the twin brothers combined to score six goals and dish out 13 assists. "Briar's played a lot of soccer," Chad Western said. "He's a smart player. We play him on the left side a lot, but he can play a lot of different spots. He's a very versatile player and he'll be on the wing quite a bit." "Tyler will play probably more spots this year than maybe he ever has," Chad West- ern continued. "He'll play a wing. He's going to be playing our center-back some when we do some different things with our forma- tions, and he is very good athlete. He's ac- tually played there a lot in travel, and we're very comfortable with him. You don't have to worry about him." Also expected to see action on the offen- sive end is Scott, who scored five goals and dished out two assists last season, and Hold- er, who scored four goals and dished out three assists last season. "(Scott) is a skilled player," Chad Western said. "He's played a lot of travel, you know. He actually works really well on the ball and off the ball. He's definitely going to get a lot of opportunities. He and Kyson work well to- gether, so we're definitely looking for him to have some breakout games." "Austin Holder will play all over that front line, and he is very good," Chad Western continued. "I think he's faster, and looks as sharp as anybody at times, so he's going to play on both wings, either of the strik- er spots. He's going to get a lot of minutes playing several spots." Anchoring the middle of the defense, Chad Western said, will be Kabrick, who dished out eight assists last season. "He could play anywhere around the mid- dle, but he's very skilled, and sees the field as good as anybody we've got," Chad West- ern said. "He has some great assets that we're looking to use him for. We're looking to play him right in the middle most of the time." Kabrick was sidelined for his entire fresh- man season because of a broken leg, but showed no ill effects of that injury during his sophomore campaign, Chad Western noted. "He played really well," Chad Western said. "He played better and better all year. He was a kid I challenged throughout the season, because he was already good, but I just wanted him to be great. By the end of the year, he was great for us. So we're look- ing to just expand on that." Two of the tallest Chargers – 6 -foot-5 Hen- son and 6 -foot-3 Booker – will also see a lot of action at midfield, Chad Western said. "Breyton is just a very, very good ath- lete, very smart, very athletic, and he re- lies on that, and that's great," Chad West- ern said of Booker, who scored four goals and dished out two assists as a junior. "But his skills have gotten better. He's going to get forward a lot more, and get more oppor- tunities. He's a kid that we think can make a big impact on that end when they're tak- ing something else away." "With both him and Cameron, we need them winning stuff out of the air, both in the middle and when we get corners and sets," Chad Western added. "They're going to be able to put a few goals away because they're 6 -3 and 6 -5 and athletic." Last season, Henson proved to be a force on the offensive end, netting four goals while dishing out 11 assists. "Cameron will play at defenside mid a lot – he'll play anywhere around the middle," Chad Western said. "With his long legs, the ground that he can cover is just crazy. Some- times you think the play's over and he gets back in it. He's a big asset." Kaleb and Quade Claridge will see a lot of action on the defensive end, along with Gavin Boyd at sweeper, Chad Western said. "They both have really good work eth- ics," Chad Western said. "Quade's a little more skilled. When it's him and Gavin or him and Tyler Meadors back there, you just don't have to worry, because they're both smart and have got good touch and good skills. They know their role. they don't try to do too much." Kaleb Claridge, however, showed off some offensive skills last season, scoring three goals and dishing out five assists. "Kaleb is just a competitor," Chad West- ern said. "He's not played a lot of soccer, but he makes up for it because of his work ethic. That's the kid I point to a lot of times and ask, 'Why don't you work as hard as him? ' He does all the dirty work. He doesn't need any of the glory. He's just one of those glue guys that keeps your team together and works hard. You really like to have guys like that. They just make everybody better." Also expected to see action in the middle of the defense are Benson and Vest, Chad Western said. "Christian's going to play a big role this year and he's going to play some different spots," he said. "He's going to sub in on our defense, for our backs. He may play out of the middle. He's very versatile, also. He can play a lot of places. But he's going to get good minutes and really give us quite a bit of presence wherever he comes in." "Jacob will play out of the middle a lot," Chad Western continued. "He may play a wing. He's a skill player. He's played a lot of soccer. He definitely brings a lot." Gavin Boyd, who scored two goals last season, returns at sweeper. "Gavin's a gamer," Chad Western said. "He is always going to give you his best when he needs to. He's always ready to have that battle with somebody, to go catch some- body, or go do something. And that's excit- ing, because he's never really over-matched. That doesn't happen very often." "With his speed and his physicality both, it's a great combination, that he can have both of them and know when to use them, and be clean about it back there, because that's a tough job when you're trying to bat- tle somebody," he continued. "You definite- ly don't want to give up a (penalty kick) or get a foul when you don't have to. He does a very good job of that. He's going to play some offense this year for us, so that will be switching gears a little bit. But it's go- ing to be good." Tormohlen – who tied for PAC All-Confer- ence First Team honors at goalie as a sopho- more – will once again guard the net. Last season, Tormohlen registered 217 saves while allowing only 20 goals – a goals against average of 1.197. As a sophomore. Tormohlen had 200 saves while allowing on- ly 20 goals – a goals against average of 1.311. "He has been a very good goalie for us the last two years," Chad Western said. "He was all-conference when he was a sopho- more. Last year, he didn't get it, but he still had a great year. Sometimes, that's the way it goes." Among the remaining underclassmen who are expected to see varsity action this season is Whann, who will serve as the team's back-up goalie. "Noah's going to play some on the field, too," Chad Western said. "He's played real- ly well this summer. He can play goalie, or he can play out of the middle, or on defense, and he's going to get some minutes." While the Chargers outscored the opposi- tion 104-22 last season, Chad Western said that the team's success is largely due to how well it plays on defense. Last season, the Chargers were 13-0 in games in which they allowed no more than one goal, 2-1 with one tie in games which they allowed two goals, and 0 -1 with one tie in games which they allowed three goals. "You're only as good as your defense," Chad Western said. "To me, that's where it starts. We all know everybody's going to talk about offense, but we always talk about defense, because that's where it's at. If we can hold anybody to zero or one, we've def- initely got a great chance to win. If they get to two or three, then we've got trouble. We know that." Pike Central's lone regular-season loss last year was a 2-1 setback at PAC rival Her- itage Hills, which went 6 -0 to claim the con- ference championship while the Chargers finished second with a conference record of 5 -1. "We definitely are hungry for that, be- cause that's the one thing we missed out on last year, when we had our best team," Chad Western said. We just didn't quite get that and, you know, that hurts a little bit. But, honestly, we said after that, when it happened, we had to move on, and we had another thing in our sights." "We're not worried about the end of the year right now," Chad Western added. "Right now, it's the conference. That's one of the most important things – we're look- ing to play good every day, but when we go play a conference game, we better be on for 80 minutes. So yeah, the conference is def- See SOCCER on page E-11