The middle of last month beat up on the Mingus Union High School soccer teams, but the boys and girls both recovered strong in their final three games to place in the middle of the pack of their section with .500 records.
Andrea Strobel’s first year as head girls coach was a stronger-than-expected schedule and chemistry challenge.
But despite a 6-1 loss Jan. 27 in Peoria to Centennial High School, the Marauders finished their lone tour through Division II with a 6-6 record, ranked No. 33 by the Arizona Interscholastic Association.
Although they edged Prescott High School, 4-3 on Jan. 20, other head-to-head tiebreakers slipped the Marauders three places back of the Badgers in Section V, finishing eighth out of 11 teams.
Head coach Calvin Behlow’s boys won their last three games to also finish 6-6 and 27th in Division III. Their loss to lower-ranked Cactus High School also slipped them into the lower tier of Section V teams, even though they finished tied for fifth with the Cobras.
But the awkward transition for Strobel and the MUHS girls soccer program will be over next season as both teams join the Badgers and other common opponents like Coconino and Bradshaw Mountain high schools in the Grand Canyon Region of the 3A Conference.
“This year, our expectations were to enjoy the season and familiarize ourselves with a new program,” said Strobel, whose final goal in her first season Jan. 27 was booted by leading scorer Martina Bueno, one of six seniors departing the program. “Moving up to Division II was certainly a challenge — we struggled against deep benches at these larger schools — but my girls did a great job of handling the pressure.”
Another of those six seniors was starting goalkeeper Kylie Hudson, who made her Senior Night extra special Jan. 22, throwing a shutout against Ironwood High School.
“The seniors this year were critical to the soccer team,” Strobel said. “Some of this year’s seniors have been on varsity for four years and know the importance of finishing strong. They did a good job of stepping up and being leaders when the team needed it.”
After Bueno’s hat trick helped defeat Prescott on Jan. 20, Strobel thought the 17th-ranked MUHS might move up one more ranking to crack the barrier for state tournament eligibility. But the final loss to Centennial kept MUHS out of postseason play.
Strobel hopes second-leading scorer Auli Hanks returns for a senior season after six goals this winter, along with sophomores Nicole Spitzke and Nikki Zielinski. They will also need to fill the starting positions occupied this season by Gabi MaKuch, Brenna McCallum and Amanda Smith.
After winning his final three sectional games by a combined score of 15-2, Behlow feels comfortable with the challenges presented by the Badgers and Bradshaw as part of regional competition next season.
“Bradshaw’s tough, Flagstaff’s tough,” he said. “Bradshaw hurt us. They beat us, but didn’t win anything after that.
“We had to win out to stay at .500 — which, at the beginning of the year, that’s exactly where I knew I would be.”
The Marauders were one Jan. 15 win over Cactus, Behlow said, from not only finishing in the upper half of their section but getting in the state playoffs.
“We should’ve beat Cactus,” he said. “We got robbed on a PK [penalty kick]. I would put myself in any game with Moon Valley, Northwest Christian or any of those top 25 teams.”
Senior Luis Hernandez had a hat trick in wins Jan. 21 and 23 over Page High School and at North Pointe Preparatory Academy to provide most of the needed offense down the stretch for MUHS.
But with “Pollo,” as Behlow and his teammates call Hernandez, and seven other seniors having exhausted their eligibility, the MUHS front and back lines will need reinforcements next winter — and that starts with sophomore goalkeeper Andrew Kulis.
“Andrew’s a much better goalie, but Andrew seems to be a fairly decent field player too,” Behlow said. “I’d play him as a striker. He’s that fast and that strong.”
Center midfield is an area of strength, he added, with Devyn Spitzke the most skilled incoming senior, supported by freshman Jovany Garcia.
Although junior Dylan Finger is expected to man the wing, he could prove to be offensively potent enough to join Behlow’s son, Zeke, a sophomore, at a forward spot.
For more photos, please see the Wednesday, Feb. 10, issues of the Camp Verde Journal and Cottonwood Journal Extra.
