Garrettsville – After the conclusion of the 2022 season, immediate questions arose regarding the boys’ soccer team’s roster size for the upcoming year. A soccer team typically consists of 11 players on the field at once. Losing 5 skilled seniors out of a total of 15 players will naturally raise concerns about player availability. With other popular fall sports such as football, volleyball, and cross country, the addition of newcomers to replace graduating seniors is not typically a concern due to elementary and middle school programs that prepare kids to make an impact on their team at the high school level. However, issues for soccer arise where the pandemic shut down the 14-and-under soccer league in our district.
With no program to attract younger athletes to soccer early, many believe that high school is too late to start a completely new sport without prior experience. As the off-season progressed, concerns diminished as enough underclassmen expressed interest in playing soccer, leading the team to believe there would be 15 or 16 players on the team come fall. However, things don’t always work out as they seem. As the season was only a few months away, the boys’ soccer coach of 14 years, Michael Coney, announced he would take an irresistible opportunity to become the head coach of the Kenston boys’ soccer team. The Garfield boys respected and understood Coney’s decision, but this was the first blow to the team’s numbers, as many boys questioned whether they even wanted to play under a new coach. The second blow came when many previously interested younger players got busy with other sports or simply decided they no longer wanted to play soccer. With these factors, the team was left with a questionable 12 players. Order was partially restored when the school selected trusted faculty member and former girls’ soccer coach Theo Cebulla to lead the boys’ soccer team. This move conveyed hope to the team, indicating that a season of play was still attainable.
With numbers dwindling, Coach Cebulla pressed on and developed a summer schedule to encourage preseason training, and returning players worked on recruiting anyone willing to play. The optional summer practices were both encouraging and concerning. While there were dedicated new freshmen at most of the optional practices, willing to learn and improve, the low attendance numbers at these practices was concerning. The possibility of a season seemed uncertain as July 31st, the first mandatory practice, approached. On the first day of mandatory practice, the team realized that 12 players would suit up this year. The idea of having only one substitute certainly wouldn’t comfort anyone, but embracing the role of scrappy underdogs is the G-Men way. During a scrimmage a week after the first practice, an unexpected returning senior showed up and decided to join the soccer team, adding one more player. While 13 is still not a lot, only 11 are needed for a full team.
Although the team only has 13 players, the G-men are bringing back 9 players, all of whom have had successful careers in black and gold. Forward Ethan Bittence, a 20+ goal scorer and the county MVP for the 2022 season; forward Ollie May, a determined second-year player who has worked hard to show significant improvement; midfielder Aaron Gissinger, an all-conference player with immense grit and physicality; midfielder Onid Rinaldi, the midfield glue with impressive passing skills and keen vision; midfielder/forward Andrew Borucki, the team’s comedian who also possesses impressive skills in taking monster shots; defender Tommy Wem, the most technical player on the team with a strong leg, both left and right; defender Aaron Rodhe, an all-conference third-year player with speed; defender Preston Gedeon, a speedy second-year player who performs beyond the skill level of one; and Brody Justice, a 6-foot-8 giraffe of a goalie and an all-conference player who possesses impressive footwork, making him one of the best in the area this year.
Facing the Ravenna Ravens on their home field, a respected program led by highly successful coach Matt Wonderly, with only a week of practice under their belts, would not be an easy task for the boys. The G-Men haven’t beaten the Ravens in the annual scrimmage in 4 years, but the scrimmage is consistently a competitive game. This year’s scrimmage was no exception; it was a highly intense game that didn’t feel like a scrimmage at all.
The game remained tied 0-0 late into the second half, with goalkeeper Brody Justice making some absolutely unbelievable saves, while the G-Men struggled to get shots on goal. This changed during a ten-minute spurt that resulted in two goals for the G-Men. The first goal came from a penalty kick delivered by Ethan Bittence after a handball in the Ravens’ box. The second goal was an incredible display of speed by centerback Preston Gedeon, who took the ball from Garfield’s defending half of the field all the way to the back of Ravenna’s net in just a few seconds, delivering a swift ball across the wet turf into the opposite post of the goal.
With a 2-0 victory over Ravenna, the Garfield boys’ soccer team realized that there was certainly hope for this year’s season. After a 15-year hiatus, Coach Cebulla and his team are back in action.
This article was written through a partnership with The Weekly Villager.