Anticipating a Successful Season for Hellgate Soccer Team
Hellgate Knights Soccer Teams Aim High in 2022 Season
The Hellgate Knights soccer teams are off to a winning start this season, with the girls' varsity and boys' teams both undefeated after four games. The teams are setting their sights high, aiming to win city championships and potentially state championships.
Chaucer Larson, a Hellgate alum and current Spanish teacher at the school, is the new head coach for the girls' team. Under her leadership, the team has been promoting an inclusive environment, starting practices with a group huddle and warmups for the entire program, rather than separating JV from varsity.
Kennedy Peterson, a junior on the girls' varsity team, has noticed the intentionality from the new coaching staff. "It's clear that they have a plan and they're working towards a goal," she said. Peterson, along with several other players, expressed a desire to go as far as possible in the championships.
On the boys' side, Ries and Sorenson have both expressed interest in winning state this year, aiming to add another state title to the eight that the boys' team has already won. Sorenson also mentioned a "side quest" of beating Sentinel in a future game.
The Knights play their home games at the Rattlesnake fields, with girls' varsity and boys' JV teams playing at the same time, and boys' varsity and girls' JV teams playing at the same time. The JV teams are currently competing against schools such as Seeley-Swan, Sentinel, Big Sky, and Loyola.
The most important upcoming game is the cross-town game against Sentinel on Oct. 14, with the girls' varsity playing at 3:00 and the boys playing at 5:00. The season started on Aug. 29, after two weeks of practice. Preseason began with tryouts on Aug. 15 for the girls and Aug. 18 for the boys.
Fraser Horton, the JV boys coach, focuses on developing the JV boys to meet varsity standards, with the goal of seeing individual and team development throughout the season. Lachlan Lurgio, a sophomore, described the season as "a brilliant season" so far. Merci Busime, a freshman on varsity, and several JV boys have also commented on the season going well so far.
With a winning streak of four games, the Hellgate soccer teams are certainly one to watch this season. The teams' hard work and determination are paying off, and fans are excited to see how far they can go in the championships.
