The BHS boys soccer team finds itself facing heightened expectations after a season that saw them win the Metro League Mountain Division championship for the first time and advance to the state tournament.
Jimmy Baggett was named the league’s player of the year and George Vukic was coach of the year.
“I expect we were a sleeper last year,” Vukic said. The Spartans rocketed out of the starting gate, handing Lakeside – an eventual state semifinalist – a 4-0 thumping in the early going.
But Baggett and some other players suffered late-season injuries, and the Spartans may simply have run out of gas by the time they reached the playoffs. They lost in the first round to Capital.
“I think we lost to an inferior team,” Vukic said. “But they were well-organized and athletic. We had nothing left.”
So Vukic, now in his third year as head coach, has set a goal this year: “To get to the playoffs and get more wins there.”
He recognizes that it won’t be an easy task. “I expect a rough road. We’ll have a battle in every game.”
The team will get a big boost this year with the new turf field in Memorial Stadium. Noting that most games – particularly in the playoffs – are played on turf, Vukic said: “Now we can train on the same surface we play on. It was always a major adjustment last year when we had to switch from grass to turf.”
Another key to the season is “pacing ourselves emotionally,” Vukic said. “We may try to ease into the season and hit a peak later.”
He’s likely to keep an extra player or two on the roster, and work closely with JV coach Scott Druker to help the team remain fresh. “We were a weary bunch at the end of last season,” he said.
Vukic is also buoyed by the team’s enthusiasm at tryouts. “We have lots of returning players, and many of the pivotal kids are juniors. They were already pivotal last year.”
Chief among the returnees is Baggett, a junior. With the unexpected early conclusion of the basketball season, Baggett – the team’s starting point guard – will be immediately available.
“He’s the A-No. 1 player to be mentioned,” said Vukic. “Much will take place around him.”
Another key player is fellow junior Ben Van Drunen. “He’s likely to be in the midfield,” said Vukic. “He’ll have a central role in the attack.”
Also vital to the team’s success is junior Austin Clement, whom Vukic feels is “95 per cent sure” to be the starting goalkeeper.
Seniors from whom Vukic expects a lot are attacker Kenji Queva and defenders Peter Pettersen and Thomas Elliott. Prominent juniors are midfielder Sam Mutty, Charlie Von Reis, who likely will play forward, and defender David Zimmerman, returning after missing all of last season.
While not making any firm predictions, Vukic anticipates that the Spartans’ chief Metro opposition will come from the “classics,” Bishop Blanchet and Lakeside. The three were bunched closely at the top of the standings last year: Bainbridge (6-1-3, 21 points), Blanchet (5-1-4, 19 points), Lakeside (5-2-3, 18 points).
And he feels sure of one thing: “We will be a very strong team. There will be no easy game against us.”
After opening the season with non-league games at home against Central Kitsap on March 14 and Kingston on March 17, the Spartans jump into league play at Lakeside on March 19.
