August 22, 2018 at 3:06 p.m.
Team preview: RHS boys' soccer
Hodags must overcome offseason losses to defend GNC crown
Team preview: RHS boys' soccer
But, in order to meet or exceed those expectations this year, the Hodags are going to have to adjust on the fly and retool without one of their top offensive threats.
Jonus Sabani, the reigning Great Northern Conference player of the year, has elected to play club soccer instead of playing his senior season for the Hodags. That leaves Rhinelander looking to replace nearly half of its offensive firepower from a year ago.
Next man up, says RHS boys' soccer coach Dan Millot.
"When you look at the loss of any player - whether it's to a graduation, to other decisions or to injuries - there's always adjustments that have to be made. That's the way we're approaching this," he said. "Jonus was a good player, absolutely, no doubt about it. He wasn't the player of the year in the conference for no reason. That being said, we've got to move on and make sure that each kid that steps onto the field is going to contribute to our success."
Fortunately, the Hodags do have plenty of pieces that can help fill the void. More will be asked of first-team all-conference midfielder Matthew Von Oepen, whose nine assists led the GNC a season ago. Rhinelander will also look for more production out of a combination of its new and returning players.
"You have higher expectations for your underclassmen - like Hugh Wiese and Daniel Ritchie - to know that he's got to step up," Millot said. "Even though he's been playing only one year, Anthony Kowalski is going to have to step up for us on a day-to-day basis."
Rhinelander already knew it would have some spots to fill in its defense, after graduating conference defensive player of the year Alec Lowry, fellow GNC first-teamer Joseph Schmitz and second-team selection Darin Bloomquist. That said, Millot figures a unit led by first-team all-conference goalkeeper Josh Randolph will be his team's strongest suit this year.
"I'm not sure who all is going to start back there but, player for player, we're definitely going to have the tallest defense in the conference," Millot said. "We'll have kids that have physical size to them, which is something we really haven't had in a long time. We'll also have speed and individuals who play on the outside who have ball skills that can attack. We're going to expect our defenders to get into the attack and be aggressive that way."
Freddy Wisner and Nicholas St. Pierre, both of whom received honorable mention from the GNC, are back in the lineup, along with five other players who were involved in the scoring last year - Von Oepen, Hunter Hicks, Ritchie, Richie Triplett, Weise and Martin Hoger.
"We have a team of kids that are working extremely hard to get better each day," Millot said. "I have a group of kids, they know that there's a lot of positions that are going to be open and they're working hard to fill those positions."
Millot said the team's overall lack of depth poses a concern. As a result, he expects his team will play more of a possession-style of soccer this year, as opposed to an attack-counter attack style that is more taxing on personnel.
"I think our offense will take care of itself," he said. "We've got some kids that our pretty soccer-savvy when it comes to their tactics and see what happens."
Rhinelander enters the season looking for its fifth straight GNC title, and seventh in the last eight years. Millot said Northland Pines, which returns a host of all-conference players from its runner-up side last fall, will likely be a threat to the Hodags' crown and added that the remaining teams in the conference possess at least a couple of players who will keep Rhinelander on its toes.
"We know what's out there, but our biggest concern is ourselves," he said. "If we stay disciplined to ourselves and our game, I think we'll be OK. It's definitely going to be an exciting year. Games will be exciting, they'll be challenging and we look forward to that. I think the closer the games are, the better it's going to prepare us for the postseason."
Rhinelander was a No. 1 seed in the Division 3 playoffs last year, but was upset 3-1 by Amherst/Iola-Scandinavia in a sectional semifinal at the RHS soccer fields last October. The Hodags hope to avenge that loss and advance one step further in the postseason this year. There's plenty of motivation to do so as Rhinelander has already been selected as the site of this year's Division 3 sectional final.
"We would love to be in that sectional final, that's our ultimate goal." Millot said. "Our ultimate goal is still always the state tournament. We've got to take care of our own business during the regular season and wherever the chips fall in the postseason, we've got to be ready for it."
Rhinelander opens the season Saturday by facing Iron Mountain, Mich. and Ironwood, Mich. in a home invite at the Hanson Lake Soccer Complex.
The Hodags open GNC play this Tuesday against Antigo at Mike Webster Stadium before traveling to Lakeland next Thursday for an early-season showdown with one of its perennial conference rivals.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
Comments:
You must login to comment.