By Dana Harding (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Not too long ago, Aurora’s soccer program went winless for three straight seasons.
Since then, head coach Curtis Bishop has slowly built the program into a winner, cultivating in an 11-8 finish last season. The Houn’ Dawgs fell in district play to Logan-Rogersville.
“We got banged up late in the year that hurt us, but every team has those issues,” Bishop said. “Our team fought hard through the adversity, but contributed to us losing our last three games of the year.”
If Bishop and the Dawgs are to continue building on last season’s success, they’ll need to first address several graduated roster slots.
Kim Long-Ly, Javier Barbosa, Christian Daugherty, Jeremy Scholbrock, Antonio Reyes and goalkeeper Shawn Pennell depart Aurora’s program. Pennell will play this season for Central Methodist University.
“Our returning players will need to fill some big shoes,” Bishop said. “Those type of players are tough to replace but have to be replaced, which allows others to opportunities to step up.”
CLICK HERE TO SEE ALL OF THE FALL SPORTS PREVIEWS
Leading the Aurora attack this season will be senior forwards Denny Mayne and Miguel Gallardo. The pair combined last season for 26 goals and 11 assists, giving the Houn’ Dawgs a host of firepower up top.
“Denny Mayne and Miguel Gallardo have been consistent scorers the last two years,” Bishop said. “Both have an opportunity to leave the program as all-time goal scorers. That can hurt you or help you depending on the players, but these players want to win and bring the school recognition so they know they can not do it without their team.”
Aurora also returns a trio of midfielders with valuable experience in senior Gavin McFee and juniors Spencer Briggs and Patrick Reyes.
“These players know how to finish and have been together for a number of years, so we are looking forward to another year of growth from them leading the way offensively for our team,” Bishop said. “They give us a speed dimension along with ball handling that has improved each year.”
Returning defenders include senior Alex Hamelink; juniors Cannon Shirley and Jordon Perez; and sophomores Jairo Hedrick, Ryan Cline, Julius Jager, Kris Lopez and Ignacio Ortega.
Newcomers to the program include sophomores Samuel Salas, Caleb Lewis, Marc Hostetter and freshmen Lester Perez, Clemente Reyes, Eric Reyes and Blake Hamelink.
With so many names on the roster capable of making a difference, Bishop finds himself in possession of something Aurora hasn’t had in past seasons.
Depth.
“As a coach, you want to be healthy, but I also hope to have experienced depth to step in when needed and that has not been the case,” Bishop said. “We have experience coming back and newcomers coming in that will give us depth, so we hope to use them in a rotation rather than need.”
Looking ahead towards the season, Bishop adheres to a simple philosophy.
“We always have a competitive district to prepare for,” Bishop said. “But our expectations are simple, compete and be the best we can be, which always takes care of wins and stats at the end of the year.”
Aurora and McDonald County head to Cassville for an Aug. 17 jamboree, then open the season at home against Bolivar Aug. 18.
DOWNLOAD THE NEW O-ZONE APP NOW!
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD FOR APPLE
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD FOR ANDROID
