South wins district title, ends Park Hill streak

No matter what had happened in Park Hill and Park Hill South’s three previous meetings this season, there was no question the district championship meeting they earned their way to last week would be the most important and deciding game of their series this year. While Park Hill South had won two of their three meetings this year, Park Hill won 1-0 in the most recent game on October 15^th and had the confidence of knowing they had ended Park Hill South’s season three years in a row in district play coming into last week’s meeting.

Despite what seemed as the Trojans’ strong recent grasp over the Panthers in district play, it was a moment in Park Hill South’s 3-0 victory over Smithville which they believe gave them the extra energy boost needed to finally break that streak. Injuries can not only create a physical absence on the field, but remove an emotional focus as well. So when a senior-laden and tight-knit group saw senior Ryan Dansby break his leg in the second half, it really shook the Panthers up.

“When it happened, we were up 3-0, but it was almost as if we could have lost it at that point,” Park Hill South coach Joe Toigo said. “They were really upset and it really took a lot out of us. The possibility for injury is always there, but to play hard you can’t let it enter your mind. However, when you see it happen, it’s almost impossible to erase from your mind.”

The lingering effects of the injury carried over into the next day’s practice where they needed to focus on the ensuing title game against Park Hill, something they’d been focusing their entire season towards. Enter the coaching staff, who organized with the booster club to order warm-up jerseys with Dansby’s #2 on them. The energy that created was something to be reckoned with and evident in the stadium the following night, not only from the team, but the parents and students as well.

“We really needed to do something to get their mind off it,” Toigo said. “They were so excited when they got those warm-ups earlier tonight. Their spirit has been great all year, so when we lose (on the field or, in this case, off of it) we can keep them from getting too far down.”

Re-energized, the Panthers had renewed their focus on their postseason aspirations while also using it to play for their injured teammate. Adam Weatherly would put Park Hill South up a goal towards the end of the first half, giving the Panthers a 1-0 lead at halftime. Brian Kissee would score in the opening minute of the second half to give them the exclamation point they needed for what would be the final 2-0 score. Park Hill, while physical and competitive until the very end, would not recover, never quite able to finish on a handful of near scoring opportunities.

After avoiding a complete Gatorade-drenching and hearing his team sing their fight song, Toigo talked about the new motivation and importance of using that to score early.

“There’s no question we’re playing for Ryan, as well as for ourselves. When we’re playing for ourselves, we’re playing for Ryan,” Toigo said. “If we can score first, we’re not bunkering ourselves in, but it gives us that little boost of confidence. I think we’re where we want to be right now.”

Park Hill South was playing Liberty in the Missouri state sectional round Tuesday night at The Citizen went to press. A win would send them to the state quarterfinals against Rockhurst/Lee’s Summit North this Saturday.

Third time is a charm for Park Hill

Before the season even began, the Park Hill and Park Hill South soccer teams knew they could potentially face each other up to four times before the season was over. Park Hill South would go on to hand Park Hill losses in their previous two meetings, the most recent being a 1-0 win in double overtime just two weeks ago to clinch the Panther Classic tournament title. Whether it real or pure clique, the old saying about it being hard to beat a team three times held true in the teams’ third meeting as Park Hill would break a scoreless stalemate when Matt Russell scored a late goal with about three minutes left in the game to gain the 1-0 advantage. The goal would serve as the game winner and give Round Three to the Trojans.

Park Hill coach Josh Marchbank says after losing two games to their rival they came to play with a different sense of urgency and focus.

“For our seniors, we said this was the last time we were going to play Park Hill South on this field so after losing two games to them earlier this season, for lot of these guys it was a motivator,” Marchbank said. “We talked about how the first two games we let the environment and the frustrations take hold. Tonight we really stepped up to the task. We possessed the ball very well tonight.”

Park Hill defender Cain Winebrenner believed the victory, compared to their previous two losses to the Panthers, came down to determination and the will to win.

“We hope to use this as momentum to get the second half of our season started and get ready for districts,” Winebrenner said. “We were hungrier (than last time) and we came out ready to play.”

Park Hill South coach Joe Toigo says Monday’s loss has more to do with not converting scoring opportunities than any kind of perceived difficulty of beating a team three times, something the Panthers have struggled with so far this season.

“It’s our fault for the margin of error. If we put the balls away and score, we’re up 2-0. It’s our problem and has nothing to do with beating them three times or four times,” Toigo said. “No matter who we play, our margin of error has been very thin because we don’t finish the opportunities that are there. If you take away our blowouts, we’re only winning by an average of 0.8 goals a game.”

Leading up to their game Monday night, Park Hill South went 2-0 last week with a 1-0 win over Rockhurst in which Adam Weatherly scored the winning goal in the final minutes as well as a 9-0 win over Ruskin. Park Hill defeated Ruskin 10-0 and Truman 4-2 before losing to Blue Springs South in a closely contested 3-2 match.

Park Hill, now 14-5, faces Liberty this week before finishing out the regular season against Staley and St. Joe Central next week. Park Hill South, with a record of 18-4, looks to Kearney Thursday and next week will conclude their schedule against Truman and Oak Park. Just around the corner for both is the postseason and a potential fourth matchup between the two teams in district play, this time with the winner moving on and the loser ending their season. With tough regular season schedules designed to prepare them for postseason situations, both teams should be primed for the challenge.

“The goal is to play every game like the state championship,” Toigo said. “That way you’ve played it 25 times before you get there.”

Park Hill focusing on task at hand after night they'll never forget

Few athletes are able to fulfill their dreams of playing professionally, but Park Hill soccer was afforded the unique opportunity to experience just what it would be like with a game at Livestrong Sporting Park against Northland rival Oak Park last Friday night. On the same night Sporting KC clinched a spot in the Major League Soccer playoffs, Park Hill and Oak Park would provide the closing act on a night that would live up to and exceed expectations for all those involved, providing memories which will last a lifetime.

“It was something they were jazzed up about all day,” Park Hill coach Josh Marchbank said. “Everyone was giddy and it was a phenomenal experience. I’ve been a (Sporting KC) season ticket holder for the last five years. I love coming out here so it’s a special moment for me and our guys to be able to sit on the bench and have all these fans out here.”

 While Sporting KC attracted a record breaking crowd to Livestrong for the main event earlier in the evening, about 1,000 fans between the two schools turned out for the high school game that followed. However, the circumstances of the contest were no random coincidence, but a testament to Oak Park senior Ray Saari, an all-state selection, who was diagnosed with testicular cancer as a sophomore and has battled through a recovery, all while continuing to play. His relationship with the stadium’s namesake organization, Livestrong, is what prompted the idea of hosting the first high school match to be played at the park. Saari and Oak Park selected Park Hill as their opponent because of the healthy rivalry between the two teams and, possibly even more important, the relationship Saari has with some of his Trojan counterparts.

“Playing with Ray, he’s a personal friend of mine and I love him so much. I want to thank him for picking us to play them here,” Park Hill senior Neal Sampson said. “I’ve got a lot of respect for Oak Park and just being here with my team and family has been just awesome.”

The atmosphere had everything a professional game would. Players warmed up to stadium music anthems, were introduced by the public address announcer while their pictures were shown on the scoreboard, and sat on the comfortably designed chairs that traditionally are reserved for professionals only.

“I think the moment that got me was when we walked out of the tunnel for the first time. When these guys walked out to the FIFA anthem to play in front of 1000 fans, it’s a special experience,” Marchbank said. “It was incredibly loud. I looked at the guys faces and every set of eyes was popping out of their heads.

Excitement and anticipation were almost building to an unbearable point leading up to kickoff. It was so bad Marchbank says he thinks it was partially responsible for a tough 2-0 conference loss the night before to Lee’s Summit West. This night though would belong to the Trojans as Timmy Hay set up Keaton Anchors in the 13^th minute for the game’s only goal. Days and weeks of restlessness building up for the game were evident on the field as players competed with the desire and physicality of a state playoff game. The Trojans hope to use it as a building block for the rest of their season.

“We talked about it before the game that this can be a turning point in our season. It’s halfway through the season and we need to work out the fine things and really perfect things going into districts,” Marchbank said. “To get a win in an atmosphere like this is really going to give us the motivation to move forward and be successful.”

“We’ve been talking about this game every day. Came into this game excited, played well, and got a win,” Sampson said. “We have to take it one game at a time; this is a good place to start.”

The immediate task at hand has the Trojans, now 9-3 on the year, focusing on their appearance in the Park Hill South Panther Classic tournament this week, but the lasting memories of their Livestrong experience will remain for years to come.

“Great experience, great environment,” Marchbank said. “It’s awesome and I’ll never forget this night.”

Park Hill to play at Livestrong Sporting Park

Every young soccer player has dreams at one time or another of playing at the next level and maybe even professionally someday. With a successful professional soccer franchise such as Sporting Kansas City and the beautiful Livestrong Sporting Park right here at home, the dream can take the form of an even clearer vision. While the odds are most high school players won’t go onto a career in professional soccer, the players at Park Hill and Oak Park will get to see, touch, smell, and feel what it is like to play in a professional stadium this Friday as they match-up in a special opportunity to play at Livestrong Sporting Park following the regularly scheduled professional game.

The game won’t be just any randomly selected game between healthy Northland rivals though. It will be a testament to Oak Park senior forward Ray Saari, who was diagnosed with testicular and lung cancer as a sophomore. Saari is a two time all-state selection who was selected as a player of the year recipient in several categories last season. Park Hill coach Josh Marchbank says he’s watched him play for several years and sees an extraordinary young man.

“He’s now been through chemotherapy and went through the worst. I saw him play indoor soccer when he was going through that. He’s a great person,” Marchbank said. “A lot of these guys (Park Hill players) are best friends with Ray and have played club soccer with him. They’re all very familiar with him and his story.”

Saari’s battle with cancer allowed him to form a close relationship with the Livestrong organization, which helps support those affected by cancer, and cyclist Lance Armstrong who is the group’s founder.

“At the opening game at Livestrong Sporting Park this season, he walked out with Lance Armstrong. So they’ve met on several occasions,” Marchbank said. “This is kind of a testimonial to him. They asked Oak Park if they wanted to play a game for Ray. He wanted to play a quality opponent with a friendly rivalry, so they asked us.”

Oak Park is expected to be wearing yellow jerseys, which is the theme color of the Livestrong organization. Livestrong Day, which is October 2, will try to organize and promote the largest single display of support for cancer survivors in history.

Soccer rivals get first look at each other

If last week’s matchup between Park Hill and Park Hill South is any indication of the future excitement between these two rivals, there will be a lot to look forward to in the coming weeks for these two teams. In front of a near-capacity crowd last Wednesday, both teams, who are considered two of the best in the metro, squared off in the first of what could be four matchups this season. Park Hill South would pull out a 2-1 victory over Park Hill, but the anticipation and physical nature of the game left plenty on the field for the next scheduled game between the two Oct. 15 or even earlier during the tournament the Panthers host next week.

Even with strong senior classes at the helm of both teams, each knew the advantages and disadvantages of playing in front of a highly fueled crowd, each hoping to stay focused on the task at hand.

“We tried to take this just as any other game,” Park Hill South coach Joe Toigo said. “We need to keep doing what we’ve prepared ourself for all season. We didn’t put anything extra on this game. It’s hard to keep high school kids settled with this much yelling and screaming. I think they kept their composure pretty good tonight."

“We told ourselves coming into this game that the team that would win is the team who stayed the most emotionally balanced, focused and didn’t let those tie into the game,” Park Hill coach Josh Marchbank said. “It’s tough when you have an atmosphere like tonight.”

Park Hill South’s Jordan Lindsey sent the Panther faithful into a roar when he scored the game’s first goal just minutes in to put the Panthers up 1-0 early. Scoring would not be what defined the contest though, as tough and physical play went back and forth throughout the night. Park Hill South would widen its lead in the second half when Andrew Gonzalez added a goal to put the game solely in the Panthers’ control. Park Hill would fight back though when Timmy Hay scored around the nine-minute mark. Several Park Hill attempts to tie the score late went unconverted as the Panther defense held, giving the first matchup between the two teams to the Panthers.

“We’re probably going to see them three more times this year. This is only game one. What counts is how we respond,” Marchbank said. “It was disappointing, I think we lost focus for a bit and they slipped it behind us. Two simple mistakes cost us the game tonight. We have a week off, which is good because this game takes a physical and emotional toll.” 

While Park Hill, now 8-2, had the chance to rest with the remainder of their week off before preparing for another round of tough conference matchups, Park Hill South continued on with a tough stretch that runs into this week. They defeated Ruskin 9-0 before playing tough Olathe East in a previously rained out tournament title game where the Panthers won 2-1 on penalty kicks. While running up an impressive 10-2 record so far this year, Toigo says his team has played a lot of close games and in order to improve they need to make sure they don’t leave themselves vulnerable to game-costing mistakes.

“We’ve played a lot of close games. We’re not even averaging 2 goals a game,” Toigo said. “We need to finish better. We’re 8-2, but could easily be 2-8 because our margin of error is so narrow with the amount of goals we’re scoring."

Park Hill South plays at Truman and hosts St. Joe Central this week before starting their own tournament next week while Park Hill looks next to this week’s games against Lee’s Summit West and then Oak Park at Livestrong Sporting Park.

FALL PREVIEW: Park Hill Boys Soccer

After making it all the way to the state semi-finals in 2009 and quarterfinals in 2010, last year the Park Hill boys soccer team had their regular season ups and downs, but sure enough when it came time for the playoffs they rolled through district play for a third straight title and, once again, advanced through sectionals to the state quarterfinals where they eventually lost to Lee’s Summit West. They come into 2012 under the new leadership of first year head coach Josh Marchbank and will again be looking to work their way into the state playoffs.

“I’m extremely excited to lead the Trojans this year. I’m very passionate about the program and believe that this group has the tools to once again be one of the best teams in Kansas City.”

While Park Hill finished the season as one of the state’s final eight teams, Marchbank hopes their preparation coming into this year puts them in a position to win more regular season games, which he believes will prepare them better for playoff competition.

“Last year we got to the state quarterfinal and were 15-12,” Marchbank said. “Last year was kind of an eye opener for some of our younger guys that saw what it takes to win. They really focused on building off that over the summer.”

Led by a strong group of seniors, Park Hill returns nine players with significant varsity playing time. Matt Russell, Timmy Hay, and Neal Sampson will combine for a strong offensive attack with Hay returning as the Trojans’ top goal scorer and Sampson their top assist man from 2011. Cain Winebrenner will lead the defense along with Austin Martin and Shane Belew. While Park Hill will have strengths on both ends of the field, their coach says it all comes together at the midfielder position where Keaton Anchors, Nick Hibbeler, and Alec Fiest will start the season.

“We have a lot of midfielders right now. For the kind of soccer style we’ll be playing, it will be very quick, so it will be disciplined and dangerous with those three guys,” Marchbank said. “The formations we’ll use are something I grew up with and fit the guys we’ve got real well.”

No matter what style of play they use, their underlying motivation for 2012 comes from meeting and exciting the expectations set over the past three years.

“The thing that is going to keep us together is our goal of getting back to the state tournament. That’s the baseline we set,” Marchbank said. “Honestly, conference awards don’t have that much stock for us. It’s really how far we can take the team at the state level.”

They’ll have the opportunity to play Oak Park at Livestrong Sporting Park on September 28th. Park Hill kicks the season off at the Liberty Tournament where they’ll play perennial Kansas City soccer programs Blue Springs and Liberty, who will give the Trojans a preview of what playoff competition could look like come October.

Trojans run into playoff roadblock

After battling through district play and eventually coming out on top as district champions despite being an underdog, the Park Hill boys soccer team fought rainy and windy conditions last week to hold on for a 1-0 victory over Liberty in the state sectionals. The win set the Trojans up for a quarterfinal matchup Saturday against Lee’s Summit West, a team they had split their conference season series with 1-1 and fell runner-up to in the final league standings. Both meetings between the Trojans and Titans this season were one-sided games for the victor, but their quarterfinal matchup would end up resembling parts of both.

“The first two games were really lopsided. They dominated us and were clearly the better team, then we really dominated them when we played here. So tonight was really a good combination of those two,” Park Hill coach Dustin Sollars said.

A trip to the Final Four at stake, the game was a naturally physical contest with the stands full at the Park Hill District Athletic Complex. While the Trojans held the time of possession through a good part of the game, a Lee’s Summit West shot from Alex Brown snuck through the grasp of Park Hill goalkeeper Mason Fannin with ten minutes left in the first half to put the Titans up 1-0 before halftime. Park Hill would again be on the offensive side in the second half, but despite a barrage of shots and opportunities, the Trojans could not convert. Two offsides penalties in the final minutes took away Park Hill scoring opportunities, one of which negated a goal.

“We were just pounding them with shots at the end and they just kept hanging out, but I mean they earned the right,” Sollars said.

In the end though their lone goal in the first half would be all the Titans would need to take a 1-0 victory and advance to St. Louis next weekend, ending the Trojans’ unlikely end of season run. Even with the disappointing loss, Park Hill’s presence as one of the lone teams still playing in the metro area is a testament to their success and an accomplishment few thought would occur back when the season started in August after losing a large part of last year’s quarterfinalist team.

“A lot of people thought we weren’t supposed to be good, no one thought we’d be here,” Sollars said. “We were supposed to be sub .500, but we were a late goal away from a conference championship, we won districts, advanced past sectionals. They accomplished everything last year’s phenomenal team accomplished. They represented themselves and their school well."

Underdog Trojans win district title, third in a row

Coming into this season, Park Hill boys soccer coach Dustin Sollars knew his team would face some obstacles if they wanted to match what they had accomplished the previous two seasons. In 2009 and 2010, the Trojans won district titles and advanced to the quarterfinals both years, advancing to the state semifinals in 2009. After losing a good portion of that experienced and talented squad to graduation, it would have been easy to write 2011 as a rebuilding year, but a 2-1 victory over Oak Park last week in the district title game has given Park Hill its third consecutive district championship and sets them up with a meeting with Liberty this week in the state sectionals.

“Being back in the playoffs means a lot. Losing that group last year hurt and as a result no one expected anything out of us,” Sollars said. “I think this year’s group took that to heart and really played with a chip on their shoulder for a while. We had bouts of immaturity along the way where we let down and gave up games, but that's what happens when you go from a very senior laden team to a new bunch.”

Park Hill seeded third coming into district play with a 12-11 record was an underdog unlike previous years. Going to double overtime in their first round game against Park Hill South with each tied at 1-1, it was Neal Sampson scoring the game winning goal to advance the Trojans to the title game against Oak Park. The Northmen who had gone through an incredible regular season racking up a 21-3 record faced Park Hill in the first week of the season in two matchups where the Trojans pulled out one victory before Oak Park came back a couple days later to beat Park Hill in what began the Northmen’s tear through their schedule. In the end it would be the Trojans not just taking the season series with a 2-1 win, but also giving them their third straight district title on the heels of goals from Shane Belew and Chris Walker.

“We were the last team to beat Oak Park before their streak,” Sollars said. “Beat them on a Saturday, turned around and lost on Tuesday. We began and ended their streak.”

The Trojans will be in a similar position for redemption this week against Liberty as Park Hill fell to the Blue Jays in a close 2-1 match earlier in the season. Sollars thinks it was a game they should have won and hopes their improvement throughout the season will give them the added advantage they need to make their third trip to the quarterfinals.

“We hit the post a couple times but just had trouble finishing,” Sollars said. “We like to think we've gotten better at finishing, but I'm sure their defense has improved very much since that second week of the season.”

For this year’s team, who may not have come into the year considered a threat, their accomplishment comes in the form of securing a part of school history in being the first team to win three district titles in row since the program’s start in 1980.

“This year’s group figured it out along the way as opposed to when the season started. And that's fine,” Sollars said. “They set their own goals and one of them was to get back to the quarterfinal game. And the exciting part is that they’re not satisfied yet.”

Fox faces Park on visitor’s side of the soccer field

October is traditionally a month of homecomings. Parades, dances, football games and the crowning of a queen. While those are the symbols and events typically associated with homecomings, it is sometimes the ones with less pomp and circumstance with the most meaning for those involved. This was the case recently during the American Midwest Conference college soccer game between William Woods and Park University as a small group of friends and family gathered to support former Park Hill soccer player and now William Woods assistant coach Zak Fox. The game was more than a rare opportunity for Fox to roam the sidelines of the same field he once played on during high school, but also a chance to compete against his former youth coach and Park University head coach Efrem Shimlis.

“It means even more now to coach against my old coach,” Fox said. “Just driving up to the stadium and realizing its all still here the way it was before is really cool.”

“He really likes being back here,” said Zak’s father Pride Fox, a Platte City business owner. “He likes that trip down memory lane.”

Growing up Fox fell in love with soccer at a young age and the coaching staff at Park University enhanced that by exposing him to the game by participating with the team. Fox’s mother Cathi pointed to the young ball boys on the field which reminded her of her son at their age.

“When Zak was little, just about that size,” she said pointing towards the boys on the sidelines, “he and several of his friends would come be ball boys for the Park games. I think they were in second grade. He has just loved soccer since he was four years old.”

Shimlis became the head coach at Park University in 2001, but prior to that he was an assistant coach and also coached the competitive youth team Fox played for. It was then when Shimlis became a huge influence and developed a close player-coach relationship with Fox that remains strong today.

“He’s one of my mentors,” Fox said of his former youth coach. “I stay in contact with him and we’ve talked quite a bit over the years,”

“I was telling him I have a picture in my office of him and the kids I coached when they were younger,” Shimlis said. “There were a lot of good kids on that team. I’m proud of him and so happy to see him.”

“It makes me feel old,” Shimlis joked when asked about Fox joining him in the coaching profession. “He’s loves the game and he’ll do fine. I’ve got a lot of respect for him and wish him all the best.”

Fox, a 2005 Park Hill graduate, played for two years at Neosho County Community College where he was a part of a conference championship team. After that he thought his playing days were over, but later received a call from former Neosho County assistant coach Nathan Mason, now head coach at William Woods, asking him to play for him. With two years of eligibility left, he had received the chance to continue playing the game he loved. He finished his senior year receiving several Player of the Week awards in the AMC before graduating with a bachelor’s degree in 2011.

Having exhausted his college eligibility and knowing that playing at the pro level was a long-shot, despite several chances to tryout, Fox decided he wanted to stay in the game and pass his knowledge on to future players as a coach.

“I had a couple of chances to try out at places, but I just decided to hang up the boots. I knew my time was up,” Fox said of his decision. “Just anything to be around soccer. I live and breathe it, so anything to stay in it.”

“He couldn’t contribute anymore as a player, but thinks he can build people. He’s always liked building things since he was a little kid, so this kind of makes sense in the fact that he’s now building people,” Fox’s father said.

Fox is currently in his first season as an assistant at William Woods. He’s also working towards his master’s degree in education, a degree which parallels his interest in working with other people and passing his experiences onto others. While Fox still finds it frustrating not to be able to make a difference on the field, he hopes to take his coaching career to the next level once he receives his master’s. With the Kansas City region lacking major collegiate soccer programs, Fox would like to make his return home permanent someday, but knows his pursuit may first take him further away before it brings him closer.

“I’m not going to pass up any good opportunity,” Fox said. “If I can come back home I’d love it, but the higher the better, I mean it’s really ‘shoot for the stars’ right now.”

Even though the chilly October night left William Woods with a 1-0 overtime loss to the Park Pirates in front of a light crowd, the lack of publicity didn’t lessen the personal significance it had for those supporting their friend and family member whose presence may vary, but whose heart remains at home.

Park Hill South takes title in Panther Classic

The Park Hill Trojans soccer team left the field at the Park Hill District Athletic Complex on Saturday with an unsettling and unfamiliar feeling following the championship game of the Park Hill South Panther Classic. That feeling came from the 3-0 loss they suffered at the hands of host school Park Hill South (12-6-1), the first such time they have not won the Classic since it started four years ago.

“We’re very disappointed. Since this tournament started we haven’t lost it,” Park Hill Coach Dustin Sollars said. “I think we’re disappointed in our own effort, especially since we did have the ball so much. I think they recognize they can do better.”

Park Hill’s loss was South’s gain and while the Trojans had possession of the ball on the Panthers side of the field for a good majority of the game, South was able to capitalize on break away opportunities to bust the game wide open in the second half.

“They (Park Hill) did a real good job of possessing the play and territory,” Park Hill South coach Joe Toigo said. “That’s not usually the way we like to play. All of our goals came on quick stuff.”

That tone was set almost immediately out the gate in the first half, when South got their first goal just a minute and a half into the game when South converted a re-start into the Panthers’ first goal. It would remain 1-0 at halftime before South tagged on two more late second half goals. Expectedly, the rivalry between the two teams began to show more signs of life in the second half when both increased their physicality.

“I told our players this is like a college game, it’s going to be physical and the refs aren’t going to call it a lot of the time,” Toigo said. “In the upper levels, many of those plays won’t be fouls.”

Toigo said his team has been focusing on playing with the mentality that the rest of their games are playoff games and hopes it will pay off when they actually do get into games where they face elimination.

“We talked about being prepared to play now like every play is the last,” Toigo said. “We can’t just turn it on October 31st for districts. It’s important to play the whole game as if it is the end of the season.”

Park Hill South defeated Winnetonka (7-0) and Ray-Pec (2-0) to advance to the title game while Park Hill beat Platte County (2-0) and Smithville (3-2, 2 OT). For Park Hill, the Trojans realize there’s a need to improve and judging by the long faces following the match, they’ll have plenty of motivation to make adjustments in case the two teams meet again in the postseason.

“If we don’t want to be a .500 team then we need to do better, we’ve had several games in our eight losses where we’ve controlled the possessions and lost,” Sollars said.

“We could see each other again in the playoffs,” Toigo said. “This was big for us, because we haven’t had much success against them in the past couple years, but we finally got to win our own tournament.”

Both teams will focus their efforts on the conclusion of their conference schedule, which both teams will be competing for title banners, before district tournaments begin at the end of October. Depending on results going forward, Park Hill and Park Hill South should find themselves in the top portion of the district seedings along with Oak Park who has been on an impressive winning streak over the past month.

Park Hill/Park Hill South boys soccer: mid-season update

Park Hill South Boys Soccer
… are now 6-4-1 after splitting their two games last week. After defeating Raytown 4-1 on two goals from Broday Bouillon and one a piece from Nick Smith and Brian Kissee, Park Hill South took a 1-0 lead into halftime against Liberty to conclude the week, but two late second half goals pushed Liberty past the Panthers 2-1.

"We came out attacking the ball like crazy,” coach Joe Toigo said of the Panthers first half. “They (Liberty) changed the style of play on us and we didn’t adapt very well. The game means nothing. We play them because they’re a rival. It’s not a conference game. Not a district game. But it’s like a backyard brawl because the kids play each other all year round.”

South will likely compete with Fort Osage for the conference title down the stretch of the season. Brody Bouillon has gone on a scoring spree of lot and solidified himself as one of the Panthers top attackers while Josh Hunt gives South a calming presence in the backfield. Josh Hall, Adam Weatherly, and Alex Weatherly have all proven consistent at the midfield position up to this point.

“We’re young physically and young mentally,” Toigo said. “We are a good passing, possession team. If we get away from that, we’ll have difficulty. We try to get possession 60 or 70% of the team.”

The Panthers travel to St. Louis to participate in the Gateway Classic Classic towards the end of this week.

Park Hill Boys Soccer

… improved to 5-6 on the season with a 3-2 overtime victory over Blue Springs last week. Matt Russell and Devon Belew scored two in regulation before Blue Springs came back to tie the game and forcing it into overtime. Belew scored in the opening minutes of overtime to end the game and send the Trojans into this week with a victory.

“They’re a solid team. We got comfortable and let up. It was a good test for us,” coach Dustin Sollars said.

The Trojans are hoping to get back onto the winning side after a tough start to the season.

“We’re trying to climb out of a bad first few games,” Sollars said. “We’ve gotten tested every time we go out this year. We’re resilient, they don’t give up. All three of our goals were the result of hard work, not quitting on a ball. We really killed ourselves conditioning at the beginning of the year and I think we’re starting to reap the benefits of being in shape.”

Offensively, Matt Russell and Tim Hay have seen most of the goals, but as Belew demonstrated against Blue Springs, his speed can serve the Trojans well from the back.

“He’s very fast and capable. I think his ability to read the game is great,” Sollars said. “His speed is deception because it catches people off guard and isn’t as evident compared to our forwards.”

Park Hill hosts St. Joe Central this week before playing in the Panther Classic all next week.

BOYS SOCCER PREVIEW: Park Hill aims to continue postseason success

Two consecutive trips to the state quarterfinals will be quite a performance to match for the 2011 Park Hill boys soccer team, but that’s exactly what they’ve got their eyes set on in additional to defending their conference and district titles. While the Trojans loss one of their most successful senior classes in school history, the cub board is not completely bare as they return a handful of starters and players with significant playing time.

Defender Devon Belew and midfielder Parker Melott serve as Park Hill’s only returning starters. They’ll be joined by defender Fernando Garcia, midfielder Neal Sampson, forward Matt Russell, midfielder Keaton Anchors, Cain Winebrenner, and first year varsity goalkeeper Mason Fannin.

Head coach Dustin Sollars says he’s excited about the talent he has coming back and that this year’s team will find its strength on defense compared to the high powered offensive teams he’s had in recent years.

“Our strength is definitely going to be on defense. We’ve got three guys out of our back four who have been on varsity their whole careers. So that is exciting,” Sollars said. “But at the same time, we’ve got a first year varsity goal keeper. I think he has a talented group in front of him though.”

One thing the Trojans will need to develop more is the mental portion of the game that last year’s team had been able to build on through their tested experience. An adjustment Sollars says will be important to the team is the transformation of last year’s role players into this year’s key contributors.

“We’re expecting people to step up and be leaders of this team, and before this, they’ve never had that responsibility. Until now they’ve been able to follow others and just play a role. Now our role players are becoming leaders, captains, great contributors. If they can handle it, we’ll be good. If they can’t, we’ll struggle,” Sollars said.

Even as two-time defending conference champs, Park Hill will have their eyes set on Lee’s Summit West and Truman if they want to successfully repeat. While the Trojans won’t have as decorated a team as they have in the past, one area to track throughout the season is the team’s ability to rebound from potential setbacks. A tough schedule awaits them starting with the Olathe Invite followed by tough matchups along the way that include a two-game road trip to Springfield, the Park Hill South Panther Classic, and Rockhurst. Capitalizing on a strong defense, they hope that even with one or two goals a game, 2011 could be another winner.

“If we can make sure we hold opponents to a few, if any goals, we have a great chance to be successful,” Sollars said.

Park Hill's Lee named an All-American, being considered for Gatorade Player of the Year

Park Hill senior Ray Lee began his soccer career like many kids do in the area, playing in his local league, the Southern Platte County Athletic Association (SPCAA). He played on a team with kids in his neighborhood, some of which would play together with Lee through their high school careers. They would see success on the field unlike any team at Park Hill since the early 1990’s as they advanced to a third-place finish at state in 2009 and a quarterfinal appearance in 2010. Lee was named Missouri Class Three’s Offensive Player of the Year along with being named to the All-State team with three other teammates. His career accolades include multiple conference and district honors, but none compare to being named an All-American by the National Soccer Coaches Association recently as voted on by coaches throughout the state and compiled with the nation’s top high school soccer players. Additionally, he is now being considered for Gatorade’s Player of the Year, a national award.

While the recognition puts him among the top talent in the country, his approach to his team is what separates him from many of his acknowledged peers. When Lee stepped onto the practice field as a freshmen, he didn’t even know if he would play very much, but coach Dustin Sollars knew he had something.

“I didn’t expect to get minutes like I did that year because there were 12 seniors,” Lee said.

“What we found out early was that he was about as fast as anyone,” Sollars said. “He was great at making opponents miss. We knew he was a really athletic kid and it took a little while to see just how good he was going to be.”

As Lee excelled, he could have easily been scoring hoards of goals on opponents, but Sollars and the Trojans had the convenience of a solid group of players in Lee’s class to surround him with. It would have been easy to position Lee in the front of the offense, but his ability combined with his knowledge of the game and composure made him a more enabling leader in the middle. No matter what Lee always found himself around the ball whether it was scoring, assisting, or just leading. He had 12 goals this past season with 28 assists (41 goals, 73 assists in his career).

“It’s rare to have someone to act like a point guard on the soccer field,” Sollars said. “We were lucky to have players around him to the point where we could keep him in the middle. He could have scored a hundred goals with his accuracy, but we wouldn’t have been as good of a team.”

Lee says his teammates helped him become better and it fit perfectly with his team first mentality that isn’t a cliché to him.

“It helped me look good,” Lee said. “The team comes first and coach gets mad sometimes because he thinks I’m almost too unselfish.”

“It’s great for him to get the accolades but it wouldn’t have happened if it wasn’t for the other guys who made all-state that grew up together playing for their neighborhood team.

Lee is in the process of looking at D-I schools, which he says he definitely wants to do. Currently, he has only visited Drake and says he liked what he saw, but hopes to see more over the coming weeks. At this stage in the recruiting process, many teams have a majority of their roster spots filled and are looking for specific roles.

“One of the best things about him is that he is very athletic, understands the game and he sees things well. I’ve even talked to coaches about him being a D-I defender. His capabilities transcend any position on the field. He has a great shot in the front along with good vision and passing in the middle,” Sollars said.

After being awarded an All-American, Lee still recognizes the reason he started soccer, because it was fun, which is something he hopes younger kids remember.

“I’d tell them to just have fun. If you really like it, try hard because its gonna take practice,” Lee said.

To say getting to where he is required hard work would be an understatement. It goes back to the same year he stepped on the field as a freshmen. Him and teammate Joel Gordon really bought into the new weight program Sollars began implementing that year and their coach recognized it right off the bat.

“He and Joel, seemed like they just took to it. They liked it and worked hard. I told myself at the time that if anyone had a chance to play in college it would be them. Not because they were better or more talented, but because they were willing to work hard,” Sollars said. “The college coaches I talk to are amazed he is 175, that comes from the weight room.”

It’s something Sollars hopes to preach to future players whether they be seventh graders or incoming seniors: what to do if you want to achieve something. And still at the end of the day, character is what separates this All-American from many of the others.

“It always sounds good to say team comes first, but he really believes it. He only had 12 goals, third on our team. You’ll see a lot of guys pad their stats, but he was still dishing the ball off, encouraging his teammates, and sitting on the bench to give younger kids the chance to play,” Sollars said.

Park Hill Soccer falls short of second Final Four after 2OT/shootout to Rockhurst

After Ray Lee’s goal with 30:16 to go in the second half of the state quarterfinal game last weekend between Park Hill and Rockhurst put the Trojans up 2-0, it looked like it was a cushion that would send Park Hill to its second consecutive state semifinal appearance. Less than 15 seconds later, the game took a considerable turn, as Rockhurst’s Doug Stevenson scored the Hawklets’ first goal to cut the margin to one and shift the game’s momentum.

“Giving up a goal that fast is tough to come back from,” Park Hill coach Dustin Sollars said. “That set the tone for the latter part of the second half.”

With the high stakes, it was a second half that created some fireworks on the field as the physical nature of both teams took over creating the need for the referee to stop play several times to issue yellow cards and threaten players with ejection. It added even more drama to already adrenaline-filled players and fan bases to focus their frustrations on the referee.

“There were a few questionable calls the kids didn’t understand. There were some things earlier in the game not called and then they were called in the second half. For that intense of a game, he did a decent job. It could have gone either way,” Sollars said.

Another Stevenson goal with 10 minutes to play tied the game ultimately sending it into overtime. Both teams were hanging on by a thread, knowing that the next goal would mean the difference between hanging up their cleats for the season and making a trip to St. Louis. A Ray Lee goal was negated with eight minutes to go in overtime when offsides was called.

Neither team produced a goal in two overtime periods, which led to a five-kick penalty shootout to settle the difference. Both teams scored on their first attempt, but the Trojans’ next two shots bounced off the goal’s cross bar. Park Hill goalie Shane VanHooser deflected Rockhurst’s third shot while Joel Gordon and Ray Lee converted the Trojans’ final two kicks. With one Rockhurst attempt left, the penalty kicks were even at three and VanHooser needed a save to force another round. One kick for all the marbles. It wasn’t to be for Park Hill, as Rockhurst’s Alex Buckner netted the final shot to propel the Hawklets into the state semifinals with a 3-2 victory resulting from the 4-3 shootout and an eruption of cheers from the Rockhurst faithful.

It isn’t the finish they had envisioned, but the Trojans finish the year 24-3-1 with conference and district titles. While they didn’t surpass last year’s run into the state semifinals, this year’s team is arguably the school’s best in history. For a senior class that’s played their final game in Trojan red, they’re able to look back on how in four years they were able to put Park Hill soccer on the map with some of the Metro’s best.

“It’s tough for them to recognize what they’ve accomplished. They’ll live in this moment for the next couple hours, but they know what they’ve done and they understand it,” Sollars said. “I’m incredibly proud of them. The standard they’ve set and the respectability they’ve brought back to the program,” Sollars said.

Even after such an emotional loss, Sollars wanted his players to know their achievements aren’t defined by one game, no matter how big the game, and there’s a more important long-term focus.

“There are bigger things going on. This is a tremendous group of young men who are going to go on to be great at everything they do, good fathers, good husbands. It was a pleasure working with them for four years,” Sollars said.

Park Hill wins district soccer title, set sights on playoff run

One sure way to win a championship is to not give up any points to the other team. That simple approach led the Park Hill boys soccer team to their second consecutive Class 3, District 16 title last week. A 4-0 win over host-school Staley led to a rematch of last year’s title game between the Trojans and Park Hill South. A cool, windy night required both teams to adapt to the gusts going through North Kansas City’s District Athletic Complex. With the wind in their favor in the first half, the Panthers put forward several shots that the Trojan defense and goalie Shane VanHooser were able to control. Even against the wind, Nick Shepherd’s goal 25 minutes into the first half put Park Hill up 1-0 going into halftime. It was David Zdvorak and Cole Walker who put in the final scores to lead the Trojans to a 3-0 championship victory.

“We were lucky to get out of there the first half without giving up a goal,” Coach Dustin Sollars said. “We come back and were fortunate to have the wind.”

The Trojans now prepare for a Class 3 sectional game matchup on Tuesday night with Kearney, who upset top-seeded Liberty. A win sets up a quarterfinal game with the Rockhurst/Lee’s Summit North game winner on Saturday at Park Hill. After a trip to the final four of the state playoffs last year, the Trojans hope to return this year and capitalize on momentum they’ve had all season that’s led to a 23-2 record. The experience of last year’s playoff run will allow Park Hill to focus more on specific areas of their game instead of the psychological side.

“Last year we spent a lot of time working on being mentally prepared and getting ready for something the kids hadn’t been a part of before,” Sollars said. “Now we have a lot of kids who have been there, so hopefully we can fix some things on the field and it will help us this year.”

The run Park Hill hopes to go on isn’t just a continuation of last year’s third place finish, but a culmination for a group of seniors who were told four years ago they could be unique.

“We’ve been telling them for four years they have a chance to do something special. Now they’re starting to see that come alive,” Sollars said. “One of those early days in August we sat down and talked about goals and they want to win a state championship. They feel really confident they can do that.”

An advantage they believe they have over the competition is their midfield and not just their skilled starters, Parker Melott and Ray Lee, but also the depth behind them.

“One thing that sets us apart is the play of our midfield. I think we have the best in the state with Parker and Ray along with some very good backups in Ricardo (Garcia) and Wendell (Thomas) who would start on any other team,” Sollars said.

While the experienced Trojan squad will use their remaining practice days to make on-field adjustments, Park Hill’s overall talent will be something to watch with a group of players who are not only athletic, but play together better than any Sollars has seen.

“I think we’re strong enough where if one guy is having an off night, somebody picks it up,” Sollars said. “We have some players who can take the game into their own hands and if they can do that early I don’t think a lot of teams can play with us.”

Park Hill Soccer storming through conference play

The Park Hill boys soccer team knew they wouldn’t sneak up on teams this year like they did last year on the way to their third place finish at state, but they’ve cruised to a 13-2-1 record so far this year with their most recent string of victories coming in Park Hill South’s Panther Classic last week as they won three straight to take the title for the second year in a row. Park Hill will now face a competitive week of non-conference games before finishing out the second half of their conference season before looking to district play.

To open the tournament, Park Hill shutout Platte County 6-0 with three goals from David Zdvorak along with scores from Cole Walker, Ray Lee, and Joel Gordon. The Trojans advanced to the title game against Park Hill South after a Zdvorak goal in overtime led to a 1-0 win over a resilient Smithville team. Walker’s two goals led Park Hill to a 2-0 win in the championship over the Panthers.

While the Trojans return nearly their entire lineup from last year, they admit they haven’t been able to turn themselves from a good team into a great team, but find it’s within their grasp.

“We create a lot of opportunities, but we have trouble finishing them sometimes,” Coach Dustin Sollars said. “We’re getting production from the people we thought we would, but the numbers could be a lot better.”

Being able to control the ball and see opportunities on the offensive end of the field is a strength the Trojans have, but it won’t take too long to notice a physical and aggressive team on the defensive end as well. Frustrating to opponents, it has a way of getting into their heads while forcing other teams into making unforced errors.

“We’re a physical bunch. A lot of time it looks more physical than it really is on the field,” Sollars said. “We play fast and hard. Sometimes a tackle looks hard, but that’s just the way it goes.”

 With a new conference schedule this year, the Trojans find themselves at the top of conference leader board going 5-0 so far and outscoring their opponents 20-3. Their sights set on another run into the playoffs, the Trojans hope their upcoming games against the likes of Rockhurst and a pair of St. Louis teams gives them more competition than their conference schedule provides which will better prepare them for some of the tough matches they’ll likely face in district play.

Park Hill Soccer gains attention, lives up to hype

One of the bad things about the Park Hill boys soccer team’s trip to the Missouri state semi-finals and finishing above the rest of the teams in the Kansas City area last season is they won’t be sneaking up on many opponents this year. On the other hand, getting Metro Sports to televise their first game of the season in the Olathe Tournament against some of Kansas’ top teams is a sign that Park Hill’s soccer program is getting the recognition they’ve earned.

Coming into this year the Trojans haven’t been able to turn out the best performances against many of the teams in this tournament, which they usually participate in to open the season. It was especially challenging going up against Olathe South, a team which had prior to last season been to the Kansas 6A state finals six consecutive years. Although a rebuilding season for a young South team, there’s something to say about that kind of success and what a win could do for Park Hill’s confidence and reputation.

“Metro Sports was a double-edged sword for us,” coach Dustin Sollars said. “The kids got excited, but they also caved to the pressure a bit, our first half was bad.”

Much the same could be said about their opponent as Park Hill and Olathe South played the entire first half without scoring and a 0-0 halftime tally. Sollars mentioned conditioning, stringing the ball together, and up the field defense as challenges in their first half. Play from central backs Devon Belew and Joel Gordon took away some aggressive attacks from South to prevent several scores.

The story was very different in the second half as Matt Russell scored the Trojans’ first goal ten minutes into the second half. Combined with a tough defense, Park Hill controlled the tempo which allowed them to see more scoring opportunities. Ray Lee added their second goal later in the half with Nick Shepherd putting the finishing touches on the 3-0 victory in the final moments. Lee and David Zdvorak contributed assists with goalkeeper Shane Van Hooser earning the shutout as Park Hill won their first game in front of the locally televised audience.

“The second half we were a little more composed and held our positions on the field better,” Sollars said. “Our big players stepped up and played well, and that helped get us going.”

In the semi-final game, after controlling the ball most of the game and seeing more shots, the Trojans weren’t able to finish as they lost against Blue Valley North 2-0. The following night they defeated Olathe NW 2-1 after being down 1-0 at halftime. Zdvorak and Cole Walker scored on assists from Neal Sampson and Zach Stuhlman in the victory. Park Hill finished third in the tournament which ties their best which was last achieved in 2003. Ray Lee and Quenton Noble received All-Tournament team honors.

Park Hill plays Liberty at the Park Hill District Soccer Complex this week and will host a pair of Springfield teams in Kickapoo High and Glendale High over the weekend.

BOYS SOCCER PREVIEW: Trojans return core of last year's third-place state team

After one of the best seasons since 1993 and tying for a school best third place finish at state, the Trojans’ boys soccer team finds themselves in an unfamiliar situation. Not only are they expecting to be successful again this year, but they’ll be doing it with some of the same faces from last year’s dash through the playoffs.

“We’re in a unique situation where we have a lot of returners. At the end of last year’s state team we only lost three seniors and we were very young. We return a large senior class,” coach Dustin Sollars said.

Sollars will look to a senior group of which 14 remain from the original 16 that came into the program just three years ago. That same core group of players led Park Hill to a 24-6-2 record last year with conference, district, sectional, and quarterfinal titles.

“This year they’re going to have to be motivated by something different. Now it’s expected, because anyone can do it once,” Sollars said. “The mark of great teams is how often they’re capable of putting it together.”

The Trojans will rely on a tough and physical defense led by Raymond Lee and Joel Gordon along with goalie Shane Vanhooser. On offense, look for David Zdvorak to score his share of goals this season with help from Neal Sampson and Quenton Noble. Park Hill not only has a handful of standouts, but also several who will contribute their composure and confidence with the ball as role players.

“We just have a cast of people that play their role to a tee,” Sollars said of his team.

As far as the competition, their schedule appears more difficult this year, especially since they won’t be sneaking up on anybody. Lee’s Summit West emerges as the most evident new conference rival, but the Trojans’ toughest competition will come outside of league play with the likes of Rockhurst, Liberty, and games against a pair of St. Louis schools.

The Trojans kick off the season at the Olathe Invitational, a tournament Park Hill teams have struggled at in years past. Sollars believes a quality showing against some stiff competition could be a good sign of what’s to come.

“Those Kansas schools are solid and they’ve shown it,” Sollars said. “That’s our early season goal is to come out sharp and prepared.”

Transitioning from last year’s success to focusing on this season and beyond has been a key goal so far for the Trojans.

“We’re just looking at what it takes to be a consistent group and build on that,” Sollars said. “Recognizing what we want to do now is set an example so they can build a legacy for years to come.”