North Montgomery boys soccer is continuing to progress under coach Tristain Hall. A season ago, the Chargers went 4-13 which tied their most wins in a season since 2019. While the Chargers will have to replace key seniors from a year ago in forward Xavier Montalvo, defensive anchor Malachi Stevens and a plethora of mid-fielders in Ben Eldridge, Landon Patterson, and Caleb Hunsberger, Hall is still optimistic about this years team as the Chargers are gearing up to begin their season on Monday when they host Covington.
“I think it all starts with getting the guys to believe in themselves and their ability,” Hall said. “Last year I felt as though we left a lot of games out of reach because of the lack of success the program has had recently without the players realizing their full potential. If we play to our potential we can compete with any team we play.”
This year the Chargers will have some experience still from that team a year ago. Jacob Lawton returns for his senior year in goal for the Chargers. Fellow senior Sam Sheetz and Edgar Biddle will help guide the Charger defense. Throw in a couple of promising sophomores in Braydin Osborne, and Kevin Toledano and it’s a Charger team that looks to keep making positive strides in the right direction.
“The young guys will definitely lean on the experience that guys like Edgar Biddle and Sam Sheetz have to offer,” Hall said of his two senior defenseman. “ What is nice is our sophomore and senior classes both have very experienced players who all have varsity playing time and know the expectations and help bring that to the new players and incoming freshman.”
Hall noted how his goals for his team are to win yes, but for him it’s about more than just the wins and losses.
“I feel it is important that at the end of the year I am able to help these young men improve their skills and see consistent improvement throughout the season as well as improve their confidence and build off of last year’s late season success. “
Along with Covington on Monday, North Montgomery will travel to Lafayette Central Catholic on Thursday and be at South Vermillion on Saturday to begin their first week of the year.
