Boys soccer takes the field
Daniel McKay / Whitefish Pilot Whitefish Bulldog senior Cody Brandt lines up a shot during practice last week.
With the first week of practice in the books, Bulldogs boys soccer head coach John Lacey said he’s happy with what he’s seen so far.
“We look great,” he said. “The boys really put in a lot of time together in the summer. We’re a lot farther ahead after one week than we were last year.”
Last season the Bulldogs finished with an underwhelming 3-8-1 record overall, going 2-5-1 in league play.
This season, Lacey is relying on experienced upperclassmen to lead the team, including captains Marty Anderson, Cody Brandt and Avery Hirsch, as well as returning leading scorers Xander Burger, Quinten Joos and Noah Romanguolo.
“Those three captains are going to be leaned on heavily for their experience, and I think both on and off the field it’s a very good group,” Lacey said. “It’s a really strong group of players. There’s a lot of optimism, whether it’s for this season or for the future.”
After last season, the focus for Lacey is improvement and developing the younger players. Lacey said there are twice the number of freshmen playing soccer this year than any other class, and within that group are players he expects big things from.
The Bulldogs begin the season at Bigfork on Aug. 30. The key for the season, Lacey said, is starting off strong.
“We’re really gearing to starting with a win and continuing that,” he said.