The Warrenton soccer team has been one of the school’s most consistently strong programs over the past decade.Following a season in which he graduated 13 players, Coach John Schulte isn’t backing away from his expectations.“I think we can stay above .500 this year,” acknowledged Schulte.The Warriors finished 13-10 last season.“We want to compete for our conference, but that’s going to be tough with St. Charles and St. Charles West,” said Schulte. “We’re gunning for West, since they won it last year.”Warrenton has just four players returning with considerable varsity experience, which means competition for vacant roles has been intense.“We told the guys there’s a lot of positions open, and it will come down to who shows us they want to be out there playing the most,” explained Schulte.Over the previous three campaigns, the single-season scoring record has been bested, but this year the scoring will likely be more evenly distributed.Senior Luke Hawley returns for his third year on the varsity level at the wing midfielder position.“He’ll be stepping into more of a leadership role this year being a senior,” said Schulte. “We’re hoping to get a little more scoring output from him this year.”Senior Zach VanDillen has become a counterpart to Hawley, playing on the other side of the midfield.“He’s one of our better scorers,” said Schulte. “He’s a hard worker who’s always in the right place. He had a few great header goals coming off some crosses last year.”Schulte also has heightened expectations for junior Adam Staley.“He has great ball control and the ability to score with both feet,” said Schulte. “He’s doing awesome and has really developed from last year.”If there is a potential record-breaker on the team, it’s sophomore Dillen Mayfied, who is on pace to set career records after scoring nine goals during a stellar ninth-grade season.“As a freshman, he was outstanding,” said Schulte. “He’s really smart with the ball and has great field vision. I’m really looking for him to be a leader.”Beyond those four, the remaining personnel is fairly unproven on the varsity level.“We’re almost starting from scratch,” quipped Schulte.Junior Kyle Casserly  is expected to serve an increased role, potentially at several different positions.“We’re looking to move him around the field a little bit,” said Schulte. “He’s been working hard to pick up the defensive and offensive schemes.”Another multi-purpose prospect is Caleb Hodgson.“You can put him anywhere on the field, he’ll work extremely hard,” said Schulte. “He brings a lot of hustle and intensity to the field.”Schulte sees Alex Heitgerd as an aggressive weapon for the Warriors, with the ability to score and distribute the ball.“He’s tall and physical,” said Schulte. “He has a great shot and really good vision and great understanding of how to play the game. We’re looking for him to really help out and move the ball around the field.”Senior Michael Eskew is expected to fill in on the defensive end, while Dylan Cosgrove’s will move to the varsity level this season.Schulte is also eager to see how well a group of freshmen, including Danny VanDillen, Austin Nicolas, Paul Lanigan and Dalton Owenby, adapt to the varsity level.The goalkeeper position, which was vacated by the graduation of two starters, has several candidates still battling for the lead role.“We have four or five kids,” said Schulte.Among them are freshman Matt Dildine, sophomore Stephen Page and Sawyer Junker and junior Jacob Scott.“We’ve had some pretty good competition trying for the goalie spot,” said Schulte. “They all have some strenghts and weaknesses.”Schulte says the emphasis this season is on teaching the younger players the value of shutting down the opposition.“One of the things we’re really concentrating on with the younger crew is defense,” said Schulte. “We thought we gave up way too many goals last year ... We could have easily been eight or nine games above .500.”

Warrenton sophomore Dillen Mayfield will be counted on for scoring this season.

Derrick Forsythe Photo.