By Denise Tucker (For OzarksSport Zone.com)
Looking toward the Fall 2021 season, after looking back at the Fall 2020 season, the Glendale Falcons seem poised to make a return trip to the Class 3 boys’ soccer final four.
The Falcons finished the 2020 season with a 17-5 overall record and 7-1 Ozark Conference mark and rolled all the way to the Class 3 semifinals where they lost 3-1 to eventual state champion Ft. Zumwalt South. They also ended tied for third in Class 3 and No. 2 in the power rankings – all with the COVID cloud hanging over the season.
“The players had to be very flexible as it seemed many things were out of our control,” said hall-of-fame coach Jeff Rogers, who enters his 31st year at Glendale. “We took every practice and game as an honor to be able to play because we knew it could change instantly.”
Glendale boys’ soccer captured its 24th district title with a victory over Springfield Catholic and then went on to defeat Lebanon in the sectional round and Neosho in the quarterfinals.
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From that team, the Falcons lose just two key players to graduation in defender Jack Gintz and forward Aaron Baldwin.
Jack Gintz scored seven goals and had two assists in earning Class 3 All-State first-team, Class 3 All-Region 3 Defender of the Year, Class 3 All-District 10 first-team, All-Ozark Conference first-team and defensive player of the year honors. “Jack was a great vocal leader and a hard-nose defender,” Rogers said.
Aaron Baldwin scored 18 goals and added four assists and was named all-state honorable mention, all-region, all-district first team and all-OC first team. “Aaron found ways to score big goals when we needed them, and he had a great senior campaign.”
The good news for Falcons fans is they return nine seniors and three juniors from last year’s third-place team led by senior midfielder Alex Spence.
“This group has a lot of game experience,” Rogers said. “Many have been in starting roles or have seen valuable playing time since their sophomore years.”
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Alex Spence, senior, midfielder, scored 19 goals and had 13 assists, earned all-state second team, all-region, all-district first-team, and all-OC first-team honors – “Alex is relentless on the field, and he never stops in his pursuit to win possession of the ball and push to finish,” Rogers said.
Camden Meyer, senior, goalkeeper, all-state first team/Class 3 Goalkeeper of the Year, all-region goalkeeper of the year, all-district goalkeeper of the year, and all-OC second team – “Camden is a very technical keeper and he really grew into a leadership role for us last season.”
Biak Lian, senior, midfielder, scored five goals with 10 assists, and was named all-district first team and all-OC second team – “Biak is an extremely talented player. He has the ability to take games over with his skill-set.”
Dylan Roberts, senior, defender, all-district second team – “Dilly is a consistent defender that has the ability to push play. He provided seven assists last year by attacking from the flanks.”
Cayden Meyer, senior, defender, all-district second team – “Cayden, like Dylan, has been in a starting role as a defender since his sophomore year. He defends hard but can also be an offensive threat as he totaled three goals and seven assists as a defender.”
Charlie Raridon, senior, defender, all-district first team, all-OC second team – “Charlie is an old-school, hard-nose player. He is a great defender but has the ability to move forward on offense.”
Jesus Martinez, senior, midfielder – “Zues had a great year as an outside flank player and he knows how to serve balls in the box for his teammates to finish.”
Andrei Balanean, junior, midfielder, all-region, all-district second team, all-OC honorable mention – “Andrei brings his own bag of balls to every practice as he usually shows up early and stays late to work on his restarts. He is a threat on dead balls and a great open-field player.”
Haiden Casper, senior, forward – “Haiden can play multiple positions on the field and is very quick in tight spaces.”
Cole Vincel, junior, goalkeeper – “Cole brings a big presence in goal and had some nice shutouts last year. He is very positive and players feed off that energy.”
Cooper Buzbee, senior, midfielder, scored one goal and had seven assists – “Coop is a great complement to Zues at outside mid. He had a great junior campaign and I know he has worked hard to have a great senior year.”
Lincoln Wimmer, junior, midfielder – “Lincoln had some valuable, productive minutes last year as a sophomore, so I am looking forward to his progress this season.”
Rogers said the Falcons have spent the summer focusing on fitness.
“We will have a long, tough schedule for 2021 and hoping the time spent this summer will prepare us for those challenges,” Rogers said.
Glendale will participate in a jamboree at Kickapoo with Nixa on Aug. 24 before opening the season at Lebanon on Aug. 31.
“This is a competitive group, and we will use our schedule to prepare us for postseason play,” Rogers said. “There are a lot of quality teams in Class 3 and teams will have to earn every win.”
