Cyclones soccer opens at home against Panthers

The HCHS Cyclones boys soccer team will be back in action at Merrill Field with a new season kicking off Monday. Senior Spencer Fink said he is looking forward to the season.

“The team is looking great,” Fink said. “We’re out here quite a bit right after we got done with wrestling and basketball. I think we’re going to have a good year. It could be the year we make a run at state.”

The team is coached by Dave Voge and assistant coach Pat Shelton.

“We always stress teamwork, ball control, soccer knowledge and the goal of improving every day,” Voge said. “There will be ups and downs throughout the season, but you have to keep pressing forward with a positive attitude. You can never stop trying to become a better player and a better teammate.”

During their 2024 season, the Cyclones finished 6-11 overall taking a first round exit in Regionals with a 2-1 loss to the Carroll Tigers. Seniors Elmer Argueta Ian Kearney and Ian Shelton were amongst the top scorers last year with Argueta scoring 11 goals, Kearney scoring five, and Shelton scoring four. Voge will be looking to other athletes to contribute offensively.

“We did lose quite a bit of talent from last year,” he said. “It is always hard to lose talented senior leaders like we had last year. Some guys will have to step up this year and we know they will. We have already seen it in the first week and a half of practice. Some of the players we look to lead the way are Fink, Reese Koch, Nolan Schwery, Aidan Ransom and Josue Argueta to name a few.”

Alex Heithoff will not return as goalkeeper, and Sophomore Lucas Paulsen has taken on that role this season. Voge is excited for Paulsen to rise to the occasion.

“We will definitely miss Alex Heithoff, there is no doubt,” he added. “We were looking forward to having him as the starter with his experience and expertise in goal, and then planned to have a couple of decent back-ups. But things happen, and you have to move on. Lucas Paulsen has really worked hard since last season and has been soaking in all of the training and shown a lot of promise so far. He has the capabilities of becoming one of the best goalies in the conference. His attitude and work ethic are evident and we see good things happening from him this season.”

Before the Cyclones open Monday with their first regular season at home against the Panorama Panthers, they will host the AHSTW Vikings in a home scrimmage. The Vikings finished their season with a 3-10 record. During last season, they were led by Kayden Baxter with 16 goals and Aiden Akers with four assists, along with Akers having 119 saves as goalkeeper.

“I love having the scrimmage before the game, that way we can see the team and coaches can evaluate off of that before the season starts,” Fink said. “It’s just great to be on the field again.”