The 8th District may be the deepest it has been for boys soccer in several years as defending champion University Heights Academy will face challenges from a pair of experienced teams in Hopkinsville and Christian County.
Fort Campbell has some familiar faces back as they look to play the role of spoiler while Heritage Christian Academy is battling low numbers as they look to be a factor in their second season of KHSAA play.
UNIVERSITY HEIGHTS ACADEMY (13-9-1)
The Blazers know they enter the 2024 season with a bullseye on their back after winning the district title in a shootout over Christian County last year.
Josh Nichols begins his second season as head coach with minimal looks at how his complete team stacks up on the field.
“It’s been a little start and stop. We’ve been short-handed most of the summer, but we have gotten a lot of scrimmages in,” he said. “We got five in at camp, at Centre, and then three at the Bluegrass State Games. I wish we could have had a full complement of players, but injuries and some other responsibilities just made it impossible.”
The Blazers return the bulk of last year’s team that won the All A Classic region title and advanced to the semifinals of the region tournament before losing to Madisonville.
Nichols expects his speed up front will produce dividends. Senior Griffin McCoy led UHA in goals (19) and assists (9) last year but has been bothered by injuries since the spring track and field season that saw him earn All-Region honors.
Senior Logan Miller and junior Hayden Hunt are two others Nichols expects to lead the offense.
“Logan started in the middle up front for us last year and will be back there again. He played really well this summer and had an opportunity to play more than Griffin has, and we know we’ll get some goals out of him.”
“Hayden came on late last year after recovering from an injury and has just been exceptional when we’ve had him this summer,” Nichols said of Hunt, who played an extensive summer baseball schedule.
Nichols likes the versatility of junior Lincoln Hauret, who can play in the midfield or the wing.
UHA has 16 sophomores and freshmen on its roster with some of them expected to crack the starting lineup.
“We’re expecting (sophomores) Cal Givens and Hugh Sisk to step into starting roles along with Jayden Williamson and Paxton Aldrige. We’re really excited about those guys in the lower classes, and they’ll be pushing for starting spots if they haven’t already gotten them,” Nichols said.
In the midfield, Nichols can mix and match with senior Ollie Marchand and junior Clayton Lester and move them forward or back as the situation determines.
Senior Harlow Hampton and junior Ryan Luckey will anchor the defense along with senior Lane Bennett.
Eli Finch, who missed last year due to an injury, will get the starting spot in goal for the Blazers.
The Blazers opened the season with a 5-1 loss Monday at Madisonville, a match that saw them start slow and play better as the night wore on.
“It may take some time to get some guys up to speed, but you hope with all eight coming around pretty quick as the season begins, that we’re ready and everybody’s on the same page at that point,” Nichols said.
UHA will host Paducah Tilghman on Thursday.
CHRISTIAN COUNTY (8-11)
The Colonels’ soccer program won four games in a 53-game stretch from 2019-21 but doubled that last year as Avery Seeger took over as head coach from his father Arne, who continues to serve on the Colonels’ staff.
The turnaround almost reached Cinderella proportions in the district tournament before the Colonels fell to University Heights Academy in a shootout for the district championship.
The monumental rebuilding task could be realized this year with a roster that features 15 seniors.
“We basically have our whole team that we had last year coming back so get to continue to build on the progression that we had,” Seeger said.
The defensive side of the ball carried the Colonels last year, helped by a back row that allowed just 2.5 goals per game and gave up one or fewer goals in 10 of their 19 matches.
“We have the same group of guys that are on defense this year. When we started the season last year, we thought maybe defense would be a question mark and it ended up being our most solid part of our game,” Seeger said. “I know that we can rely on them defensively, and that goes with goalkeeping and our back four. They are very consistent, and they’re reliable, so it’s something that we can always trust that we’ll have.” And the other thing is that we have experience back there, and they’ll help lead from the back up in the midfield and to our forwards as well.
Cayden Brown, Zack Dawes, Zamien Matlock, and Tyler Stokes all return after seeing time in the back last year.
With the defense returning mostly intact, Seeger will be looking for his team to control the midfield and create scoring chances.
“We’re getting faster, but it’s not where I’d like it to be and I know that the team also wants it to be quicker, and they thrive when it is faster,” he said. “We will work to push our limits and continue to increase our speed and try to improve with every game.”
Christian Lopez led the Colonels with 13 goals last year, while Noah Davis had nine helpers and Leland Creamer added six.
The Colonels will need to improve on building on leads and creating some separation on the scoreboard after losing six games by a single goal last year.
“Our defense kept us in the game for the most part last year, but our attacking will be different this year and we have to start to win and get that feeling and continue to improve every single game,” Seeger said.
Mason Malone is set to return in goal after a sophomore campaign that saw him average six saves a game and notch four shutouts behind the defense.
While the rebuilding task isn’t complete, a chip on the shoulders of the Colonels is the shootout loss to UHA last year that denied Christian County its first district championship in a decade.
“That’s something that’s driving us and we want to show who we really are, and what we’re really capable of. And we want to do that by lifting the trophy,” Seeger said.
The Colonels open the 2024 season on Tuesday at Franklin-Simpson and will host Murray on Thursday.
HOPKINSVILLE (6-11)
When you talk about the improved soccer teams in the Second Region, Hopkinsville has to be mentioned after a 2023 campaign saw the Tigers go 6-11 against a brutal schedule. The Tigers played six teams that won their respective districts, two region champions, and another that advanced to the region title match.
Coach Aaron Hutchison said those losses were more of a mental roadblock as the season progressed.
“Last year we beat ourselves before we ever walked out on the pitch, whereas this year the boys seem to feel like they can compete any night. We want everyone to hold each other accountable this year,” he said.
Junior Gavin Harton and freshman Jason Macario will handle most of the offensive load up front while Alex Rameirez anchors the midfield.
“That’s the most important area of the field, and they have to be able to control the game and distribute the ball where it needs to be,” said Hutchison, who added finishing plays remain high on the preseason priority list as the Tigers get ready.
On defense, Hutchison will have the services of Anthony Evangelista, David Lopez, Ethan Fabian, Haydon Cowherd, and Marvin Morales with Raul Rivera and Landon Beaulieu competing for the goalie spot.
The Tigers will look for an improved effort defensively after giving up eight goals in seven losses last year. The eight-goal mark becomes more crucial this year as it has become the benchmark for the mercy rule.
With that said, Hutchison doesn’t expect many of his matches to end on the wrong side of that eight-goal margin.
The Tigers still have a tough schedule with the likes of Murray, an 8-0 winner of Hoptown on Monday, as well as Ohio County, Greenwood, and Bowling Green.
But they were 5-4 against region teams last year and expect to be in the mix come postseason time.
Hopkinsville will open the district portion of its schedule Wednesday with a home match with Fort Campbell.
FORT CAMPBELL (7-8)
Dan Drier, a long-time coach and referee in Tennessee, takes over the reins of the Fort Campbell soccer program for 2024.
The Falcons just missed the program’s first .500 season in 11 years and return a good portion of the roster from last year.
Dylan McDonald led the Falcons with 12 goals and nine assists last year, while multi-sport standout Mateo Cerritos Gatto added seven goals and eight assists.
They will be joined by seniors Chase Cribett, Aiden Freck, and Ryan Brewer who combined for six goals and three assists.
“I think with their creativity and technical abilities, they will create scoring chances for their teammates and themselves. Defensively they will stay connected with the defense and help break up attacks,” Drier said.
The Falcon defense gave up just three goals a game last year and held eight opponents to two goals or less.
The Falcons’ back four will consist of junior Dominick Fitzpatrick and sophomore Miguel Oranday along with All-State track performer Sam Atobi and Micah Castillo.
Drier said John Arnold will start in goal.
Playing catch-up has been at the forefront for Drier, who took the coaching job over the summer.
“We have gotten some work in and just wrapped up tryouts. We will be working to make sure we have the right players in the right positions to best help us win,” he said.
In the newly designed five-team district, Fort Campbell won its first district tournament game since 2016. Drier is hoping some consistency with the roster and coaching staff will help return the Falcon program to the success it enjoyed with five straight winning seasons from 2008-12.
Fort Campbell begins its season Wednesday at Hopkinsville.
HERITAGE CHRISTIAN ACADEMY (0-10)
While most coaches in the area have spent the past few weeks working with their teams in preparation for the upcoming soccer season, Heritage Christian Academy coach Lloyd Young has added recruiter to his title.
HCA, the school with the smallest enrollment in the region, is struggling with numbers, forcing them to cancel Tuesday’s opener with Trigg County.
The program graduated four seniors from last year’s team – two of those girls as HCA is the lone program in the region to offer a co-ed roster against all-male teams.
HCA Athletic Director Matt McGowan said they hope the start of school this week will allow them to approach prospective players and encourage them to join the team.
It will also allow Young and McGowan a chance to recruit middle schoolers for a junior varsity team.
Kallan Davis scored eight goals for the Warriors last year while Lucas West led the team in assists and was second in goals.
Senior Jayden Nichols and junior Cayden Nowak return on defense as the Warriors look to replace top defender and team captain Rachel Robson.
Heritage Christian Academy officials knew the jump to the KHSAA would be easier for some of its programs than others. However, the school is continuing to build its numbers at the lower levels so that emergency recruiting doesn’t become the annual norm for the Warriors.
HCA is scheduled to begin its season Friday at the Kentucky Christian Athletic Conference (KCAC) State Tournament against Whitefield Academy.
