There aren’t many schools in the state that will play a tougher schedule than Hopkinsville in 2023.
Aaron Hutchison’s Tigers will face five region champions and two of last year’s state semifinalists. It’s a slate the third-year coach hopes gets his squad ready for the postseason.
After a 6-6-1 start to 2022, the Tigers won six of their last nine matches, including a first-round victory over Lyon County in the region quarterfinals.
Hoptown lost eight seniors from last year’s squad, including two of the team’s top four scorers.
Hutchison is hoping a mix of youth and experience will learn and benefit from the tough schedule by the time the postseason arrives.
Nickolaus Klaur scored 19 goals for the Tigers last year and tallied twice for Hoptown at last month’s Bluegrass State Games.
Kyler Delvecchio, who scored four goals last year, and Alex Rameirez, who scored twice before missing the final seven games with a broken wrist, will join Klaur up front.
Sophomore Gavin Harton and senior Thieng Nguyen will also key the Hoptown offensive attack.
Hutchison is high on freshman Lester Mecario in the midfield and thinks he may be able to help with the direction of the offense.
Defense has been the priority for the Tigers although they took their lumps in the preseason with a pair of 10-0 losses.
“We learned a lot from the Bluegrass State Games, and we’re still trying to fill some gaps,” Hutchison said, adding there are still a couple of starting spots still up for grabs. “I think we’ll be better defensively because we’ve focused on it more in the preseason.”
Senior George Baker will anchor the defense along with junior David Lopez.
“We have to tighten the gap between the defense and midfield,” Hutchison said, hoping the defense can help feed the midfield in hopes of generating offense.
Jackson Smith and Caleb Shull will share time in goal.
Hopkinsville will play at state quarterfinalist Daviess County on Aug. 12. Two weeks later, it’s a trip to Louisville to play state runner-up St. Xavier. On Sept. 9, the Tigers will play at Bowling Green.
Hoptown only has eight home games on the schedule with their final five on the road.
The Tigers open the 2023 season Monday at Heritage Christian Academy in what is the first meeting between the schools and the district opener for both.
In this YSE interview, Coach Aaron Hutchison previews the 2023 Hoptown soccer team.
