Hillsboro won its first district championship in six years and was the only county member of the JCAA to advance to the sectional round.
Perryville won the JCAA with a 5-0 record but the Pirates were bounced out of the district playoffs by Notre Dame (Cape Girardeau). North County continued its dominance over Hillsboro as the Raiders ended the Hawks’ season in the Class 3 sectionals with a 4-0 shutout in Hillsboro.
As conference champions, it wasn’t surprising that the Pirates led the way with four first-team JCAA selections. Sophomore Cole Gerstenberger, junior Trent Untereiner and seniors Aaron Mueller and Jacob Sparkman were selected for the Pirates.
Windsor was second with three first team players – juniors Cesar Bello and Connor Portlock and senior Michael Eby. The Owls finished the season 10-14-1 after losing to Hillsboro in the district championship.
Here is a look that this year’s all-JCAA first-team players
Windsor
Eby picked up the nickname “cheeseburger” when he was a freshman because he loves the fast-food staple. Windsor head coach George Van Dyke said Eby came to camp out of shape and unmotivated as a sophomore and was demoted to the JV. Eby worked hard to return to the varsity and finished the season with a team-high seven goals.
“We had a really good team last year but he sat the bench, but when he got his minutes, he shined,” Van Dyke said. “This year he came to camp in shape and pushed himself. He wanted to lead the team in scoring and scored two crucial goals.”
Van Dyke said Bello is a unique individual who was asked to lead the team in assists this year, while scoring a few goals. Bello scored the Owls’ first goal this season and finished with five goals and four assists.
“For us, he’s a cog in the center of the wheel,” Van Dyke said. “He is talented, to say the least. I know I always want more assists from him and a couple more goals.”
Portlock, known as “CP20” by Van Dyke and his teammates, was held down on the JV level, like Bello, as a freshman. Now he’s one of the top players in the conference, and plays to the edge as evident by leading the Owls in fouls and yellow cards. Portlock, who is a natural wing midfielder, played center midfield this year and is excellent at ball control and finished with six goals and nine assists.
“He can control the game,” Van Dyke said. “He has a goal next year to one up Cesar, but they have a friendly rivalry. They argue all the time in practice. They are such good kids to have on the team.”
Hillsboro
When the coaches in the JCAA met to decide the all-conference team there was one player they all wanted on their team: Hillsboro senior Danny Theiss.
At 6-4, Theiss patrols the Hawks’ backfield like a middle linebacker. He’s also talented with the ball at his feet, as he chipped in with three goals and an assist. Theiss was dangerous on the offensive end of corner kicks and routinely drew two or three players to cover him.
“He’s been steady all four years,” Hillsboro head coach Chris Shacht said. “He wins every single ball in the air. His knack for being that big tall guy in the middle will get to any ball within 10 yards.”
No player in the JCAA was more important to his team than junior Joe Bogowith was in goal for the Hawks. Bogowith finished with a goals against average of 1.47 and he played all but 20 minutes of the season.
“He’s a solid keeper who trains in the offseason,” Schacht said. “He’s coachable. His communication with the back line helps immensely. Having him back for another year is a position you like to be in. You hate to throw somebody in there and hope they can stop shots. As far as being a keeper, that’s what Joe is. All of the things that make a keeper good he’s got down to a science.”
St. Pius X
Sophomore Jake Madden led the Lancers with 11 goals, six assists and 28 points from his center midfield position. Beyond the goals and points, St. Pius head coach Steve Smith said Madden has all of those intangibles besides scoring that help the team win.
“He imposes his will on the game,” Smith said. “He’s one of the best players I’ve coached or coached against. He’s very technical and has good insight. He’ll kind of dangle, and then all of a sudden make an excellent pass. He’s exciting to watch.”
Madden turned in his best game this fall on his birthday on Sept. 26 against Affton. Smith said the Lancers had just played their worst half of the season and trailed 3-0. Madden scored a hat trick in the second half to tie the game, and the Lancers won 4-3 in overtime.
“If you take him out of the equation, you’re not the same team,” Smith said, “He’s a college player playing high school soccer.”
Junior Jason Rothweiler started his career with the Lancers as a center midfielder and transitioned to center back. Smith said Rothweiler is super explosive and one of the more technical players he’s coached. Not the biggest player, it’s tough for forwards to get past him.
“I think he will be our key piece to that back line,” Smith said. “He’s that guy you will have earn a goal to get past him. He’s incredibly explosive and tenacious. He plays with such composure.”
De Soto
Sophomore Nick Reiser earned his second spot on the all-JCAA team after scoring seven goals and assisting on eight more this year. He finished last year with 21 assists and is very good at playing through balls.
His father, head coach Nate Reiser, put Nick at center midfield or striker, depending on how the game was going. Nick plays for a Lou Fusz club team with players that attend schools like Lutheran South and CBC.
“He’s going to get bigger and faster,” Nate Reiser said. “He plays with an incredibly good club team. He will gain a lot from playing with them.”
The father and son are constantly watching or talking about soccer, sometimes much to the chagrin of Mrs. Reiser, the coach said.
“We have a relationship where the guys laugh when we disagree at practice,” Nate said. “We get along great. We talk soccer all of the time. When we’re not playing it, we’re watching it.”