Sunlake High School is considered a powerhouse boys soccer program in Pasco County.
And for good reason: The Seahawks have a long track record of success, a winning coach, and they’re undefeated so far this season.
But they’re not the only ones.
Wiregrass Ranch High School has had five straight winning seasons, and the sixth already is in the bag after just 13 regular season games.
The Bulls are 13-0, including 5-0 in Class 4A-District 8. They’ve scored 62 goals compared to just five against, with nine shutouts. Their closest opponent in the district standings, Mitchell High School, lost 2-0 to Wiregrass Ranch last week.
And according to coach David Wilson, they don’t need to be micromanaged to succeed.
“They’ll run the first 25 minutes of practice without me having to do anything,” he said. “I say one thing to them, and they’ll be gone. They go on their run, they come out and stretch, they do their preliminary practice stuff and their preparation stuff.
“There’s expectations that we’ve set and these kids know what to do when they come in.”
Part of knowing what to do comes from playing at the local club level, Wilson said. Including the junior varsity team — which also undefeated — around 90 percent of their players participate in club soccer.
While the Bulls are dominating offensively and defensively, the coach said their strength lies in their depth. Injuries, sickness and club soccer commitments have required the team to dig deep into the roster frequently, and their bench players are able and ready to perform at a high level when called to the pitch.
“There’s not a drop-off when we have to go to the bench,” Wilson said. “You can wear teams down if you can go to your 20th player and have the kid not drop off too much from your No. 11 player.”
There isn’t any drop-off when they switch goalkeepers, either. While the shutouts and low goals against are impressive, it doesn’t come from one standout player. The Bulls actually rotate dominating goalkeepers, including Wilson’s son, Payton.
They have another goalie getting work at the junior varsity level, so an area that causes some teams to struggle is a very deep position at Wiregrass Ranch.
Wilson hopes that depth helps the team go farther than they did last year, even though it was a successful season. They reached the regional semifinals before falling to district rival Mitchell, 5-1.
That loss — at home, no less — stung some of the players. Providing a little payback with a 2-0 victory on Dec. 9 was an important win for them.
“That felt great. It was sweet revenge,” said Brendan Duran, the team’s assist leader.
After not playing their best in their final game last year, he said it’s important to start out this year strong and keep expectations high so they can advance farther.
But expectations alone won’t get it done, and Duran believes the team has the skill to reach the state finals. But even skill isn’t enough, and he knows what else is required to reach their potential.
“It’s going to have to take dedication,” Duran said. “And definitely hard work.”
His coach agrees that the team has the ability to compete for a state title, but he won’t be running around on the sidelines and screaming at his team to get there. Wilson isn’t that kind of coach, preferring to keep things in perspective and build strong foundations that aren’t swayed by the emotions of one game.
But he’s proud of the program, noting that alumni frequently come to games or practices to support the current players and reminisce with him about previous seasons.
Wilson, who also coaches tennis and is the school’s athletic director, has been coaching soccer for 26 years. But if other schools are hoping he might hang it up soon and give them a chance to topple Wiregrass Ranch, they’ll probably have a long wait.
“There’s really nothing else I want to do,” Wilson said. “I still really enjoy it.”
Published December 17, 2014
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