Soccer squads already on their way toward goals

The high school boys soccer season kicked off Wednesday as teams all over the Inland Northwest began their quest for state titles this May.

Defending Greater Spokane League champion Lewis and Clark is once again favored to defend its title, but Ferris, Cheney, Mt. Spokane, University and North Central will look to give the Tigers a run for the crown.

In the Great Northern League, Riverside and Medical Lake will fight it out at the top, with Colville, Pullman and Deer Park figuring to be heard from throughout the season.

Here's a preview of the area teams in the Greater Spokane and Great Northern League boys soccer seasons.

Cheney Blackhawks

Things look bright for the Blackhawks, as nine players return from last season's 10-10 club that finished its season with a shootout loss to West Valley-Yakima in district play.

Six of the nine players back are seniors, which should bode well for Cheney early in the season.

"It's always nice to have a group of seniors willing to work together," said head coach Steve Davis. "Usually they ride the ups and downs of a season with a better focus than a younger group."

Up front, sophomore Jessie Ratan and senior newcomers Gerrad Faucett, Derrick Knox and Nate Olson will join senior forwards Chad Thornton and Adam Clayden.

In midfield, the Blackhawks welcome back senior Patrick Folsom, junior Jeff Davis, sophomore Tyler Culston and freshman Adam Brock.

Defensively, Cheney returns seniors Connor Fuhrman, Cody Kendall and Wade Neilsen, junior Adam Olsen and sophomore Devin Merrill.

Sophomore Josh Hooley is back in net for Cheney, joined by senior newcomer Tim Reinbold.

"I think we have some players who can step in and work together," said Davis. "One of the strengths of the kids up front this year is their unselfishness.

"They know the value of an assist is equal or greater than the value of the guy who puts the ball in the net."

Ferris Saxons

The Saxons lost five seniors from a team that finished second in the GSL to Lewis and Clark and lost in a shootout in the first round of the state tournament to eventual champion Richland.

Ferris will reload this year, though, as eight starters return for the Saxons.

"The hard part is going to be figuring out where to put guys so that they really come together and kind of gel," said head coach Robin Crain. "We've got a lot of versatile guys who can play several different positions, so it's kind of finding out who can play what role. Once we get that figured out, I think we'll be really strong."

All-league goaltender and senior Josh Anderson is back, although he is recovering from a broken wrist suffered in the off-season.

"He's definitely someone who's a leader in the back," Crain said.

Second-team defenseman and senior Austin Washington also returns for Ferris, joined by senior Brent Banasik and junior Kyle Yonago in the back. Last season's leading scorer, senior Dan Landry, leads the midfield corps, which will also return last season's assist leader, junior Eric Burke and sophomore Cody Taff. Up front, second-leading scorer and senior Cody Wilson is back, joined by senior Brett Mulgrew and junior Avery Washington. Seniors Gabe Knox, Luke Stanek, Jordan Knox and Pat Pacyga will compete for spots on the backline, while senior Brad Alice will look for time up front.

Gonzaga Prep Bullpups

The Bullpups finished 8-7 last season in the GSL but were decimated by graduation, with just three starters back from that team.

"It's going to be a really, really young team for us this year," said head coach Christian Birrer. "Our starting lineup will be predominantly underclassmen. Our midfield will be all freshmen and sophomores."

Junior forward Max Mean will lead the Bullpups up front, while senior Bernie Rihn and junior Matt Brasch return in back. Senior Matty Davis will join Mean up at forward, along with sophomores C.D. Roberts and Xan Gilmartin. Senior Jon Schmitz and junior Lee Barker are the only upperclassmen in midfield, as sophomores Greg Hilbert and Scott Legel and freshmen Matt Wakeley, Morgan De Shazo and Ryan Kunkel will be counted on for major playing time.

On defense, juniors Danny Anderson and Austin Lanier and sophomore Brock Trotter will look to keep things clear in front of keepers, senior Chris Williams and junior Jonathan Ehrenberg.

"It's going to be called a steep learning curve," Birrer said. "I really trust these guys, though. They have a great work ethic, (are) very coachable, and have a tremendous amount of potential."

Lewis and Clark Tigers

The two-time defending GSL champs come off a disappointing 1-0 quarterfinal loss at state to Richland but will have 12 returning players, including five starters back from that team. The experienced Tigers appear ready to defend their crown.

"The seniors have all been to a state championship game," said head coach Kenny Krestian. "Some of them played in it. The rest of them have been at least to a state quarterfinal game. It's great."

LC is strong in the midfield, returning seniors C.J. Moe, Skye Henderson and Trevor Cross, while juniors Brandon Darnell and Brad Posten are also back. Up front, junior Matt Harnetiaux returns as a starter, as does senior defenseman Tim Olson. Junior Chris Beckstead and sophomore Dan Fuller also join Olson on the defense. Freshman forward Stefan Andersson will also be counted on to lead the Tiger offense.

"Technically, he's very good," said Krestian. "He reads the game very well. Through training, he's shown he can find the back of the net, as well as set up the players around him."

In goal, senior Ben Fairchild will take over for Kris Wright. Fairchild's brother, Andy, was the Tiger keeper two seasons ago.

Medical Lake Cardinals

The Cardinals finished second in the Great Northern League last season but won the district title before losing in the first round at state to Quincy. Medical Lake will have nine players back from that squad, including five starters.

"We want to improve upon our play from last year - that's kind of the goal right from the beginning ... make it to state and get past that first round," said head coach Zane Higgins.

All-league goaltender senior Derek LaSalle is back in net, as is his backup, senior Jeff Jackson. Second-team all league forward and junior Jason Gomez will lead the Cardinal offensive attack, while midfielders senior John (Sharkey) Gormoey, junior Shane Thompson and sophomores Andrew Smith and Nick Daniels are also back for the Cardinals. Senior Jason Nabakowski and junior Brad Groce will anchor the defense. Medical Lake will also count on Brazilian exchange student and senior forward Felipe Fagundes and sophomore midfielder Craig Ritti.

"We've just got to work on fundamentals," said Higgins. "We did lose quite a few (players). It's going to be hard to replace them.

"Overall, we're going to have to wait and see. Brad and Jason are two strong defenders who played last year, so hopefully they'll help the guys in the middle."

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