By Kory CarpenterRecord Sports EditorThe Warrenton soccer team experienced a little bit of everything in 2015.With underclassmen scattered throughout the roster, Head Coach John Schulte came up with a motto.“Don’t be afraid to fail,” he called it.“The hope was that kids would try some different things and get out of their comfort zone and get a little bit better skill-wise at the game,” Schulte said. “And I think we succeeded at that. I think the kids are better today than at the start of the season.”The Warriors (7-15-1) won their opening game against Fulton, 8-0, before navigating a tough schedule with a roster full of players experiencing varsity soccer for the first time.Freshman midfielder Isaac Frederick emerged as a future contributor for the program, scoring three goals in his debut season.Three other underclassmen — Nick Forrest, Andrew Hodgson and Angel Cortez — scored this season, but it was Forrest who showed coaches glimpses of greatness.The sophomore forward broke the school record with a team-best 23 goals this season.“Last year he had three goals,” Schulte said. “But this year, he really broke out and had more confidence.”Forrest was joined up front by senior forward Dillen Mayfield, who broke school records with 65 goals and 155 points for a career.He finished his senior campaign with 20 goals and nine assists.“It wasn’t the best season,” Mayfield said. “But toward the end, we started stringing together wins and played together as a team. I thought we really did some good things throughout the season.”Warrenton finished 2-6 in conference play with a sweep of Winfield, and returns all but four seniors in 2016.Along with Mayfield, Schulte will look to replace forward Cesar Rodrigues, midfielder Tyler Busken and goalkeeper Sawyer Junker.“They were some big players,” Schulte said. “Dillen was half of our scoring, and he will be gone. But I think we have some kids that can step in and do a great job.”Junior goalkeeper Matt Dildine played over half the season in net and is expected to return, which should help the Warrior defense.Finding consistent scoring threats will be Schulte’s plan between now and August.“It was great for those younger kids to get that varsity experience and next year they’ll be bigger, quicker and more experienced,” Schulte said. “I’m looking for those freshmen to step in and have a bigger role next year.”

Connor Schaumberg outruns an opponent in a match earlier this season. Schaumberg picked up two assists on the year.     Tim Schmidt photo.