Serving Lucas, Ottawa, Sandusky and Wood Counties
Genoa’s boys soccer team will be in a familiar position this year, battling low numbers and a small roster for the second consecutive season, but 12th-year head coach Tim Memmer loves the mental outlook of his squad.
“The summer has been really good,” he said. “They're a good group of guys. They've been really easy to work with. It feels better to be able to have a focus to work on something. We've had some challenging years previously with willingness to really learn how to play the game. This group has been very willing to work on things and adjust to things, and not just ‘I just want to run out there and kick a ball.’”
Memmer expects to have around 15 players this year, which is similar to last year, although some of the guys will be multi-sport athletes, which means some games could mean an even thinner roster.
The Comets, which finished 6-10-1 last year, will work to overcome the graduations of guys like First Team All-NBC selection Jayden Kutchenriter, who was the team’s leading scorer, as well as Second Team All-NBC selections Max Huss and Gavin Goodman. Honorable mention selection Isaac Schimmoeller is also gone.
Another all-conference honorable mention selection center back Noah Fennewald returns for his junior season as Memmer said he’s probably the team’s most experienced returner.
Two more juniors return, including defender Jesse Reardon and attacking midfielder Marcus Wheeler, who sat out most of last year due to an injury.
That group also includes five seniors. Julian Diaz is a dual sport athlete, and Hayden Russell is in his first year playing soccer. Other returners include Romelio Cummins, Alex Herman and Tabor Zeller.
Several freshmen are also in the mix, and Memmer said staying healthy will be a key to success.
“We've limited scrimmages and stuff to not overdo anything, just because we're short numbers,” he said. “We're trying to gain experience for the younger guys. We have three freshmen right now, and we want to make sure we get them plenty of experience. (In the Genoa-hosted 795 Cup scrimmage), we saw some signs that felt pretty decent.”
