By Denise Tucker (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
The saying, “It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish,” is the perfect description for the Springfield Central Bulldogs’ 2023 season.
After competing for several years in Class 4, the Bulldogs headed into the Class 3 District 6 Tournament with a 7-17 record as the No. 3 seed. But Central got hot at the right time, defeating Hillcrest, Branson and Webb City to claim the program’s first district title since 2019 before falling to Springfield Catholic (4-0) in the program’s first trip to the state quarterfinals.
“Last year’s season was full of its ups and downs,” said coach Nathan Cardoza, who enters his third season at the helm and was named Coach of the Year in Class 3 Region 3 and the district. “We lost games we should have won, pulled off a couple of wins we really wanted and put up some competitive scores against a couple of really good teams.
“But what really made a statement for us was our postseason run. We did not have the result we wanted by any means, but I think it is still something we can learn from as a program, and hopefully, have the opportunity to have a shot at it again this year. I could not have been more proud of the boys. My hopes are that with last year’s success, our mindset as a program will change and the boys will start believing that we are capable of great things.”
After spending time in the Ozark Conference and as an independent, Central makes the move to the highly competitive Central Ozark Conference.
“Everybody loves the underdog story, and that’s what we will be in the COC,” Cardoza said. “My personal goal is to be able to put up competitive scores, and hopefully, snag a couple of upsets for the boys. I know we are capable, it just won’t be an easy task.”
The Bulldogs, who return the bulk of their roster, led by all-state seniors Jack Brinkman and Max Robertson, will look to make another postseason push.
Jack Brinkman, senior, midfielder – Scored 20 goals with 8 assists; earned Class 3 All-State first team, Class 3 All-Region 3, Class 3 All-District 6 Player of the Year/first team and All-Ozark Conference first team honors. “Jack is the heart and soul to our team,” Cardoza said. “He has been a leader for us for several years and this year will be no different. His ability to see the field, hold the team accountable and communicate to every position is something that has made him stand out. This year, our goal is to keep Jack in the midfield and, hopefully, add a couple of workhorses around him to help with our offensive push.”
Max Robertson, senior, defender – 3 goals, 5 assists; named Class 3 All-State honorable mention, Class 3 All-Region 3, Class 3 All-District 6 Defensive Player of the Year/first team and All-Ozark Conference second team. “When a coach is looking at the effort of his players on the field, there are very few boys in the area that can match Max’s intensity,” Cardoza said. “Max plays every minute as if it is his last and sets the tone for all to follow. Max was a huge part of our defense last year, but this year we are working on a way to be able to push him up the field and use his pace to challenge some other teams’ defense.”
Kris Thawng, senior, defender – Earned Class 3 All-District honors. “Kris is a very deceptive player. He has a quick pace and matches that pace on the ball. He is a talented CDM (center defensive midfielder) and we are going to count on him to step up big this year for us to control our defense, and start the push into our attacks.”
Calvin Torres, junior defender – A Class 3 All-District honorable mention selection. “Calvin has started as a defender for us since his freshman year and has been an important piece of our backline every year. As a junior, we are counting on him to step up into more of a leadership role and control the boys around him to be able to keep us in every game.”
Logan Canada, junior defender – Class 3 All-District honorable mention. “Logan is capable of playing any position and, quite honestly, might have to do so for us depending on the team we are playing. We are looking at all our juniors to step up this year, and I think Logan is going to do just that. He is valuable to us and we are going to use his ability and willingness to play any position needed by his team.”
Tony Pham, junior forward – “Tony is what I like to call a coachable athlete. He always has a great attitude, listens to what his coaches are saying and puts work into improving his game. We are hoping he, along with all of the juniors, will start to step into a big role for the team.”
Owen Smith, sophomore midfielder – Scored 4 goals with 1 assist, named Class 3 All-District honorable mention. “Owen really stood out his freshman year. He played one of our wings last year and was part of our offensive success during district play. This year, we plan to keep him out wide and continue to work on his ability to make those deep runs and provide service to the back-post runs.”
Gavin Lou, sophomore midfielder – “Gavin is special. He has genuine talent on the ball and is a skillful center mid. This year, we are going to look at ways to get Gavin more involved in our attack. He has potential to play that target for us up top, run out wide, as well as play in the center for us. His vision and ability to connect passes are something we are going to try and capitalize on going into this season.”
Luke Phelps, sophomore defender – “Luke is a multi-sport athlete and is playing for us and the football team during the fall. Luke is a stud on the field, and as a freshman last year showed that he is able to defensively hold up the older boys. Now with a year of varsity under his belt, he is quickly growing into a key defensive player for us. He consistently makes key tackles for us and is never afraid to go head-to-head with anyone.”
Cardoza also looks for senior Brady Murr and junior Kosten Hopper to have an impact on the varsity level this season.
“Brady played a handful of varsity minutes last year and, over this summer, is showing that he is putting in the work to get more time on the field,” Cardoza said. “He makes good runs out wide and does have the ability to finish.
“Kosten was our JV keeper last year, and with that position open on the varsity team this year, he is working hard to fill that role. This summer, he has shown growth and has been working hard to fill that need for the team.”
In addition, the Bulldogs have a couple of upperclassmen, including senior forward Ali Hadi and junior defender Niwa Ntizala, as well as a few freshmen players who Cardoza says could earn varsity minutes.
A few key losses to the Bulldogs’ roster this season include the graduation of goalkeeper Trevor Selley and midfielders Isaac Garcia and Ryan Doel.
Selley, whom Cardoza describes as “one of the best keepers I have had the pleasure of working with,” earned Class 3 All-Region 3, Class 3 All-District 6 Goalkeeper of the Year/first-team and All-Ozark Conference honorable mention honors.
“The Trevor I met three years ago when I started at Central, and the Goalkeeper-of-the-Year Trevor were night and day,” Cardoza said. “Trevor was such an important part for us in so many games last year. He was good in the air, came off his line when he needed to and had the ability to save PKs with the best. We are going to miss having Trevor around this year, for sure.”
Garcia scored 6 goals with 11 assists and was named Class 3 All-State honorable mention, Class 3 All-Region 3 and Class 3 All-District 6 first team.
“Isaac was not only a leader for us, but he was a workhorse,” Cardoza said. “His speed, vision and persistence was something that was crucial to our offense last year. He filled multiple roles for us and that effort and pace he brought to our game is going to be hard to fill this season.”
Doel contributed 4 goals and 3 assists, while earning Class 3 All-District 6 first team honors.
“Ryan was one of our leaders and was a player that had respect for his team and the coaches that was admirable,” Cardoza said. “He made it a point to thank his coaches every day, helped with anything asked by the coaches and was a great example for others. On the field, his speed on the ball and connectivity were something we counted on and is something we are going to struggle to replace this year.”
Central will kick things off in a jamboree at Ozark with Republic and Parkview, before opening the regular season at home in a state quarterfinals rematch with Springfield Catholic on Aug. 30.
“I know the boys are eager for that rematch just as much as we are as coaches,” Cardoza said. “I think it will be a good indicator for us on the boys’ mindset for the year going into big games.”
