Bluejays varsity soccer team kicks off new season with full roster

With a total of 20 players on the roster, the Three Lakes-Phelps boys varsity team hit the practice field last week and already faced its first major challenge of the new season with an opening game matchup with the Eagles of Northland Pines High School early this week. While the results of this game were not available as this edition went to print, the Bluejays were optimistic because one half of the team is returning following a season when they had a 6-6-4 overall record.

Not only will the Jays have a full roster of players, but the coaching team will return as well. Head coach Brad Volkmann is returning for his sixth season with the team, following many years coaching a variety of youth programs. He is joined again this year by assistant coaches Phil Doherty and John Welsh, experienced soccer coaches and former players.

Volkmann said that he is happy to see some new energy in the program through the addition of several first-year members to the team.

“Soccer is often thought about as a great sport that nobody really talks about,” he observed. “Running a program at the same time as popular fall sports of football and cross country sometimes makes it difficult to get the attention of certain athletes but this year the interest has been great and I am excited to see what this group of kids can accomplish.”

Equally important as finding students with soccer skills or potential are the character skills Volkmann looks for when building a team.

“Character and sportsmanship are key attributes that I look for,” he said. “We can teach soccer strategy and skills, but we also want kids who can demonstrate the important personal attributes as well. We may not always be the most imposing team on the field, but we have a lot of athletic and personal talent on this team and I think we will have a fun and competitive season.”

Returning letter winners include Ashton Boehm, Grayson Polcaster, Cruz Melton, and Matthew Klein, all seniors and all with significant experience on the team. They will be joined by juniors Cohen Welsh and Lucas Riker, two players who have played key roles on the team since their freshman seasons. Mason Schoenek, Carson Plehn, Will Connor and Isaiah Perlewitz are sophomores and round out the returning players from last year.

Final position assignments were still being evaluated just before the game against Northland Pines, but it is expected that Polcaster, Melton, Welsh and Riker will be in goal scoring positions while Schoenek will continue in his role as goal keeper. New players to the team include Corbyn Gutbrod, Charlie Welsh, Zach DeHaan, Ryker Hafer, and Matthew Potrykus. All are expected to be contributors to the team. A former state qualifier for the cross country team, Ethan Potrykus, will also be joining the soccer team and, according to the coaches, showed promise in his early practice sessions.

The Bluejays are hoping to fill the shoes of Charlie Liebscher, Christian Jolin and Peyton Pitlik, who have been lost to graduation.

Each had significant playing time last year, and Volkmann stated that they will be missed for their leadership on and off the field.

The Bluejays will once again compete in the Northern Lights Conference, which is a challenge because over the course of the past decade, the conference has lost the participation of nearly every school. This leaves the Jays without the ability to compete for a conference title, but instead, they will have to earn playoff opportunities through a season of non-conference games.

Following the local matchup with Northland Pines, the team will next face Pacelli/Iola-Scandinavia this Thursday, August 28, on the road against a team that made it to the regional finals last year only to lose by a single goal. Game time is set for 7:00 p.m.