Team review: RHS boys’ soccer

It was always going to be a tough ask for the Rhinelander High School boys’ soccer team to repeat is magical run to the 2022 WIAA Division 3 state tournament. Having graduated 11 seniors from that squad, and experiencing changes in the coaching staff, the Hodags never could quite recapture the mojo that led to the first state tournament appearance in program history.

That’s not to say 2023 did not have its moments. The Hodags, during the regular season, beat a Lakeland team that wound up in the sectional finals. Rhinelander found itself in most every game it played but, ultimately, lacked the scoring punch it needed in a number of close contests. 

The end result was a 9-5-3 campaign, a third-place finish in the Great Northern Conference and a season that ended in the regional final round at Mosinee. 

Assistant coach Jack Gundeck wrapped up the season succinctly earlier this month in his remarks during the team’s banquet.

“Looking over the season, there were lots of highs and lows, but one word really stuck with me — and that was resilience,” he said. “The boys really showed resilience throughout the year and after last season and losing a lot of seniors, the boys really stepped up, each and every one of you, and showed that Rhinelander is a team to be feared.”

Gundeck moved up from the middle school program to help coach the high school side when John Weigel was promoted to head coach after Nathan Bates stepped aside at the conclusion of the 2022 season. Between the new staff and a starting 11 that featured a number of new faces, the 2023 season proved to be a transitional one for the Hodags. 

Here are five storylines from the team’s season. 

In contention early

The Hodags led the GNC at the halfway point of the season, thanks to a penchant for winning tight contests. 

Rhinelander scored three 1-0 victories during the first half of the conference season. Will Gretzinger’s 70th-minute finish gave the Hodags a 1-0 victory over Medford in the GNC opener. Mason Eyer scored his first and only goal of the season in the 30th minute against Lakeland and the Hodags held on for a key early-season win. Matthew King’s header in the 76th minute was the difference in a 1-0 win at Northland Pines. 

Even the Hodags lone draw in the first half of the season was dramatic. Rhinelander canceled out a Mosinee goal off a free kick in the 70th minute with a Aidan Ostermann rebound goal less than a minute later to earn a 1-1 tie. Mosinee would ultimately win a penalty kick shootout for an extra conference point, 5-4.

Despite scoring only six goals in its first five conference games, the Hodags were unbeaten at that point of the season.

“We’ve had some tough matches, a couple ties. Mosinee beat us in a PK, but I’m happy with the boys,” coach Weigel said. “They’ve just made it through five tough games. We haven’t been beat yet and that’s huge.”

Offensive woes

Ultimately, the lack of offensive production came back to bite the Hodags the second time around. The Hodags were shutout on the road by Medford, Lakeland and Mosinee over the final five games of the season. 

The common denominator in all three games is that the Hodags fell behind early and then could never find the equalizer. 

“I kind of made a point to the boys that we need to come out with some urgency and start on fire and it didn’t get through,” Weigel said after a 1-0 loss at Mosinee that officially eliminated the Hodags from title contention. “We started off a little slow. We had that fire at the end, but ran out of time. We were a little too late.”

Overall, though Rhinelander finished third in the GNC in scoring, its 16 goals in 10 conference games were half of that scored by the No. 2 offense in the conference, Mosinee.

Postseason highlight

At least for one night, the Hodags flipped the script on their late season offensive struggles. Once again trailing after conceding a first-half goal in Waupaca, the Hodags answered with a goal by Asher Rivord late in the first and then got the game-winner from Gretzinger in the 64th minute as the Hodags advanced in the tournament opener, 2-1.

The winning goal was a departure from how the Hodags tried to generate much of their offense during the season — either capitalizing on through balls up the middle or set pieces off of free or corner kicks. This one was a well-played cross from Michael Schiek to the back post, where Gretzinger heading it home.

It was the kind of offense coach Weigel said he hoped to see more of during the season, and it paid off at a critical time.

“Sometimes you work on things in practice and you just wait for the game when they can actually take the things we’ve worked on and execute them,” he said. “It makes you proud. They put in the hard work and it was awesome to see that.”

Statbook

Three seniors led the Hodag attack this season — King, Will Quinn and Gretzinger. King was a bit of a jack-of-all-trades player for the Hodags. He would sometimes be stationed back on defense, but usually was pushed into the attack when the team needed an offensive spark. His nine goals led the team this season.

Quinn came out of the gates strong, scoring three times in the season-opener at New London. He had only two more goals the rest of the season, but proved to be a facilitator in the Hodags’ offense with a team-leading seven assists. Gretzinger finished the year with six goals and two assists. 

Rhinelander’s recent run of solid goalkeeping continued this year, despite having its third different starter at the position in the last three seasons. Junior Barak Rappley posted solid numbers, going 9-5-3 with a 1.24 goals against average and a .817 save percentage. He was also recognized as the first-team all-conference keeper by the GNC coaches. 

    In this Sept. 14, 2023 file photo, Rhinelander’s Matthew King heads the ball for a goal during the second half of a GNC boys’ soccer game against Northland Pines in Eagle River. King led the Hodags with nine goals scored ruing the 2023 season. (Jeremy Mayo/River News)
  

Overall, the Hodag defense finished the year second in the conference, giving up eight goals in 10 conference games — only one behind Lakeland. Senior Neil Weigel and junior Hart Hokens received first- and second-team honors in the conference, respectively, for their roles on the Hodag defense. 

Quinn, King and Schiek received all-conference honors as part of the Hodags’ attack.

What’s next

There figures to be even more transition next year for the Hodags, who will graduate seven seniors off of this year’s team. In addition to Quinn, King and Gretzinger, the team will lose Mason Shinners from the attack. Neil Weigel and Dalton Fritz will depart from the defensive third of the field while the seventh senior, Garrett Younker, was unable to comeback from a knee injury he suffered in the second half of the 2022 season.

“It was a great season,” coach Weigel said. “A lot of these boys that are the seniors, I’ve been coaching them with Nate Bates since they were little. It’s pretty emotional to see them all go, but it was a fun season.”

The Hodags will have some piece back, defensively, with Rappley and Hokens. Offense will be a bit of a question again as the team graduates roughly three-fourths of its scoring production from this season. Schiek (2 goals-4 assists) and Rivord (2-0) will be the only returning players who scored multiple goals this season.

Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].