Blake Soccer Teams Riding Youth Movement
By Nick Clark
Sun Newspapers
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The soccer fields at The Blake School in Hopkins have been full of excitement this fall, as both the boys and girls return to their respective teams overflowing with anticipation.
And with the changes taking place on both teams, it is easy to see why.
Both teams are young, and with that, inexperienced. But, as the season enters its first full week of action, another thing is clear.
Both of these teams are talented. Here is a preview of what to expect from Blake's soccer teams:
Two games into their 2005 season, one thing is certain about the Bears girls’ soccer team.
They are balanced.
In their early season trip to Central Minnesota for a pair of matches with Sauk Rapids-Rice and St. Cloud Tech, the Bears scored five different girls scored as Blake put up seven goals over the two games.
"We learned that we have more than one kid who can put it in when given an opportunity," said head coach Paul Menge. "It was really nice to see."
Another thing that put a smile on the coach's face was that fact that they only allowed one goal over those two games.
Defense was the heart of this team a year ago. Blake only allowed 12 goals in their 18 games last season. The loss of All-Everything goaltender Kendall Boyd will make that statistic tough to duplicate, but Menge was happy with what he saw in the season's first week.
"What is important to us is to play good team defense and we are right now," Menge said. "Our forwards and midfielders are very instrumental in coming back and helping out on defense, and that has given our team a solid foundation."
Boyd was one of four seniors that graduated last year. All of them played significant roles on and off the field for Blake, and Menge said that on the field, off the field combination is what he is looking for again this year.
"I am a firm believer that talent is only half of what you get out of your seniors," Menge said. "The other part is the kind of leadership and fire that they give you and so far our seniors have been pretty good, they are proving themselves as we go."
Menge said senior captains Melissa Davis and Vanessa Nesbitt are leading that charge, making sure this team is one that plays together.
"They are doing a great job, and they are very important because we are young," he said. "We have six or seven sophomores and three freshman, many of which are in that first group of 11 that is out there when we start the game. We have a lot of talent returning and the good news is that we will for a couple of years."
Charlie Seel has been coaching the boys’ soccer team at Blake for 37 years, but this fall, he is experiencing a first.
"I am carrying five freshman on the team this year, and I have never had that many on the team at one time," said the coach. "But, thanks to some really nice leadership, they haven't really played that young."
The main reason for that, like Seel said, is the leadership that the coach has gotten out of his returning players.
Captains Connor Cox, Matt Dooley and Matt Wheeler have taken ownership of the team, and have been more than willing to share their experiences with the younger guys.
"All three of those guys have done a really good job at bringing this team together and helping along with the transition," Seel said. "It has been really impressive to watch."
As has his team. Two games into the season Blake was 2-0. The beat West Lutheran 3-0 in the opener then followed that up by blanking Bethany Academy 4-0.
"We have really tried to concentrate on our defensive part of the game and through two games, our defense has been really good," Seel said. "So I am really pleased with how that defense is coming around."
The defensive unit sums up what this team looks like all over the field. Dooley has been playing in the middle and anchoring the unit, but surrounding him is a group of players new to the team.
Michael Ankeny and David Nash are both in their first years and are playing along side Dooley on the defensive end.
[Dooley] has really taken that unit and helped them come along," Seel said. "It has been that way all over this team."
And if it continues to go that way, Seel has a great chance to add another chunk on to his 360-career win total.
"We have some really good things going on," he said. "I really like this team. We have some really talented players."
Reprinted with permission Sun Newspapers
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