Boys' soccer outlook

The Clarke County boys’ soccer team was heartbroken to see its undefeated season end in last year’s Class 2 state semifinals.

With nine returning All-Region 2B selections, the Eagles have a chance to rejoice in a manner that hasn’t been seen since 2006, the year they captured their last state championship.

Clarke County lost its two leading scorers in Region 2B Player of the Year Justin Toone (31 goals, seven assists) and Brendan Haun (21 goals, three assists) as well as starting goalkeeper Wynn Morris. But those are the only players the Eagles (11-1) lost from a team that wracked up an incredible 98 goals, an average of 8.2 per game.

Returning All-Region players for the Eagles include area assist leader and junior forward Oakley Staples (six goals, 17 assists); junior midfielder Chris LeBlanc (15 goals, eight assists); junior forward Leo Morris (four goals, 13 assists); sophomore midfielder Charlie Frame (six goals, six assists); senior forward Harim Torres (four goals, five assists) and junior midfielder Ian Waldner.

Clarke County also only gave up 10 goals last year, and the Eagles’ defense will feature senior All-Region selections Caleb Neiman (three goals) and Jesus Ramirez and sophomore Joe Ziercher.

James Wood (15-1) had a historic season a year ago, setting school-records for wins (15), shutouts (11), winning its first-ever regional title, and advancing to the Class 4 state semifinals, where it lost in penalty kicks to Jefferson Forest.

The Colonels lost their two leading scorers in Seth Hammond (24 goals, 14 assists, now at Division I Elon); and Chris Garcia (17 goals, 12 assists, now at Division II California of Pennsylvania) and also Erick Nolasco, who tied for fourth in the area with 12 assists.

James Wood does return sophomore Tristan Obert (eight goals, eight assists), who will move from midfielder to forward, and bring back three returning starters from a defense that gave up only nine goals in senior center backs Micah Frigaard and Ryan King and outside back Ethan Bowman, a junior.

Sherando coach Pat Anderson and Handley coach Cosmo Balio both think Millbrook (9-5, Region 4C semifinalist) has the potential to unseat James Wood as district champions. The Pioneers’ season opener at Harrisonburg was postponed.

Rhonda Cottino, a former Millbrook boys’ assistant and star player for the girls’ team, is taking over as the Pioneers’ head coach following the resignation of Keith Kilmer after 12 years.

Cottino has several talented returners to work with, including goalkeeper and senior Nick Catlett (five shutouts, area-best 7.6 saves per game), senior defender Patrick Sigler (team leader in assists last year with nine), junior defender Tyler Mallen (three goals), senior midfielder Raphael Espinoza (seven goals) and senior forward Brandon Riley (six goals).

Sherando (6-5 last year; lost 3-0 to Broad Run in Monday’s season opener) suffered major losses due to graduation, including all of the team’s point leaders. Defender Ethan Laing (now at NCAA Division I Longwood) is one of the departed.

Sherando does have plenty of experience in goal with the return of senior Jacob Steele (seven games, 1.9 goals against average, 5.0 saves per game) and sophomore Connor Sanders (five games, 1.5 GAA, 5.4 spg).

Balio is back with the Judges after previously coaching them from 2006-2016. He led them to a 16-0 regular season in the last season of his previous stint, but he takes over a team that went winless last year (0-8-3). Former head coach Scott Bucey, who guided Handley to the 2018 state tournament, is staying on as an assistant.

The Class 4 Northwestern District athletic directors have decided to return to giving the district regular-season champion an automatic berth into the Region 4C tournament. The other region qualifier will be the district tournament champ or the team that advances to the district tourney finals if the regular-season champ also advances to the district tourney final.

The following is a glance at each area team:

Clarke County

Coach: Patrick Casey, fifth season.

Last year: 11-1; Region 2B and Bull Run District champions; lost to Nandua in Class 2 state semifinals.

Key losses: Brendan Haun, Justin Toone, Wynn Morris.

Key returnees: Jesus Ramirez, Sr. D; Caleb Neiman, Sr. D.; Leo Morris, Jr. M; Oakley Staples, Jr. F; Chris LeBlanc, Jr. M; Charlie Frame, So. M; Harim Torres, Sr. F; Ian Waldner, Jr. M; Joe Ziercher, So. D.

Key newcomers: Jose Ramirez, Fr. D; Brody Murphy, Fr. D; Jackson Ellis, Fr. M.

Casey’s outlook: “We expect the team to continue building on the success we experienced last year. We work hard to win every game we play. Hopefully, that means that we will be competing for the district title again this year.”

First game: March 22 vs. Waynesboro

James Wood

Coach: Brian Sullivan, seventh season.

Last year: 15-1; Region 4C and Class 4 Northwestern District regular-season and tournament champions; lost to Jefferson Forest in Class 4 state semifinals.

Key losses: Seth Hammond, Chris Garcia, Erick Nolasco, Brandon Dunn, Hayden Armstrong, Connor Ballentine, Efrain Cruz.

Key returnees: Micah Frigaard, Sr. D; Ryan King, Sr. D; Dashawn Paige, Sr. M; Jon Resendiz, Sr. M; Tristan Obert, So. F; Edgar Del Moral, Sr. M; Ethan Bowman, Jr. D.

Key newcomers: Joey Cannata, Jr. D; Hunter Barnhart, Jr. D; Mike Cannata, Sr. D; Jacob Myers, Sr. D; Ben Tanger, Sr. GK; Colin Craig, So., M; Brayan Lopez, So. F; Sam Frigaard, So. F; Chris Viera, So., M.

Sullivan’s outlook: “I expect to be competitive this year and look to continue to build off of the success we have had the last two to three seasons with double-digit overall wins. We will need to replace the lost scoring from our outgoing seniors but have a ton of youthful talent coming in that is capable of scoring at the varsity level. We bring back a ton of experience in our back line and that is going to be the strength of our team. Having 11 shutouts last year gives me hope that we will be tough to score against this year and, in turn, stay very competitive in games.”

Next game: Thursday at Heritage

Millbrook

Coach: Rhonda Cottino, first season.

Last year: 9-5; lost to Park View in Region 4C semifinals.

Key losses: Tanner Coffman, Sunny Singh, Sam Bryant, Tyler McGuire, Amiel Bravo, Sean Mennard, Daniel Humphries, Mauricio Carballido Flores, Joseph Rangel.

Key returnees: Nick Catlett, Sr. GK; Patrick Sigler, Sr. D; Tyler Mallen, Jr. D; Aaron Shipp, Sr. M; Eric Price, Sr. M; Raphael Espinoza, Sr. M; Hamilton Lopez, So. M/F; Garrett Johnson, So., F/M; Brandon Riley, Sr. F.

Key newcomers: CJ Zeller-Bender, So. D; Logan Huck, Jr. M; Duvan Herrera, So. M/F; Logan Arthur, Jr. D/M; Carter Luden, So. D/M; Will Demus, Fr. F/M; Dev Patel, So. D; Christian Cassidy (transfer from Briar Woods), Sr. M/F; David Benavides, So., F; Christian Nixon, So. M.

Cottino’s outlook: “I expect good things from the group we have this year. We’ve got a solid group of experienced returners, but also lots of young newcomers who will bring new energy and intensity. I’m not going to put any concrete expectations on this team. I just expect we will see positive accomplishments if they do the work I’m asking of them and compete to their fullest potential. I don’t have one player to highlight above the rest, but I’m pleased with the dedication the seniors have already shown in preseason and through tryouts. I expect them to be the driving force for this team’s success.”

First game: March 22 at Kettle Run

Sherando

Coach: Pat Anderson, 28th season.

Last year: 6-5; lost to Millbrook in Class 4 Northwestern District quarterfinals.

Key losses: Jack Hendren, Ethan Laing, Ben Rodriguez, Wade Butler, Jacob Hill, Dai Laduca, Will Freilich, Kevin Aragon, Shamus Kerr, Caleb Henderson, Samuel Melendez, Micha Petty.

Key returnees: Noah Benavides, Sr. M; Harrison Burrell, Sr. M; Joshua Call, Sr. M; Cody Crittenden, Sr. F; Wyatt Deck, Sr. D; Brandon Fedez-Quiz, Sr. M; Cooper Freer, Sr. M; Trevor Gates, Sr. F; Gilberto Hernandez, Sr. M; Jacob Iddings, Sr. F; Jacob Steele, Sr. GK; Connor Sanders, So. GK.

Key newcomers: Jack Weisbrod, Fr. M; Owen Wade, So. M/F; Nick Danielson, So. M; Ben Smith, So. D; Drew Arnoldy, Jr. M; Joseph Burton, Jr. M; Jeremy Dawood Jr. D/M/F; Owen Grose, Jr. D/M/F; Liam Kerr Jr. M/F; Joshua Pollak, Jr. M; Brody Purtell Jr. D/M/F; Oliver Rafael Rosa Diaz, Jr. F.

Anderson’s outlook: “We’re very young in varsity experience and looking to grow as a team throughout the season. We’re hoping that we can use the regular season to develop the experience that we need to be successful and use that time to learn our roles throughout the season.”

Next game: Thursday vs. Fauquier

Handley

Coach: Cosmo Balio, first season in return, 12th overall (also coached the Judges from 2006-16).

Last year: 0-8-3; lost to James Wood in Class 4 Northwestern District quarterfinals.

Key losses: Bryan Gonzales, Logan Coffelt, Adam Pollak.

Key returnees: Sam Cornette, Sr. M; Robert Avant, Sr. D; Sergio Santos-Rosales, Sr. F; Jonathan Romero, Jr. F; Ramon Diaz-Guzman, So., F; Jag Fitzsimmons-Call, So. M; Dash Fitzsimmons-Call, So. D; James Fowler, So. D; Sebastian Moore, So. M; Owen Turnbull, So. GK.

Key newcomers: Jonathan Ramirez-Arriola, Sr. F; Edgardo Sanchez-Lopez, Jr. M; Rigoberto Alvarado Pineda, Jr. F; Bryce Pollak, Jr. GK/M; Gavin Way, Jr./M; Henry Felix, So., D; Elmer Sanchez-Hernandez, So., F; Julio Claros Lozano, Fr. F; Axel Grimaldo, Fr. D; Jack Justice, Fr. D; Eniel Cedillo Ramos Jr., Fr. D.

Balio’s outlook: “There is no secret last year did not turn out like the players thought it would. We talked early about putting it behind us and building a strong foundation with the players coming out for this year’s team. The goal is to get one percent better each and every day. Scott Bucey and I sat down and quickly identified the strengths of each returning player as well as the newcomers and we will try to build to those strengths. Our senior class is small but talented. The four seniors will need to lead a young, talented group. I’ve placed a lot of responsibilities and expectations on these guys but feel they are ready to have a great year. Three of them have been in the program for four years so they understand what we are asking of them. We have a deep group of juniors and sophomores that has some of the most talented kids in the area. Playing for clubs that compete in ECNL like Loudoun and Bethesda, these players have seen some of the best soccer on the East Coast. Rounding out the team are four freshmen, who provide excitement for the coaching staff with their raw talent. The team overall is definitely talented but it will be our job as coaches to fit the puzzle together to put the best 11 players on the field. Practices have been very competitive and intense since the players understand playing time is earned by their performances at practice. It’s been nice to see how each player is pushing each other so early. We can see the difference in the team already. We can be promising.”

First game: Today at Loudoun County

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