HS Soccer Stop: No assumptions for Myers Park soccer this fall; updated Sweet 16 poll
It seemed so obvious – the 2021 season would be a big one for Myers Park High boys’ soccer.
After all, several key pieces were back from the Mustang team that reached the state finals the previous season before falling to Cardinal Gibbons.
So last year’s Mustang team might have been guilty of assuming it would be back in the finals again, senior defender James Anderson said.
“That’s probably what we were thinking,” he said.
Instead, Myers Park lost a third-round playoff match in penalty kicks to Southwest Guilford.
“That loss sent all of us a statement,” adds senior forward Jack Boutin. “We underachieved.”
To be fair, Myers Park finished with a 13-3 record and outscored the competition 79-13. But the playoff loss and a 4-2 conference record are driving this year’s squad, say several of its seniors.
“I think we played more as individuals last year,” Boutin said.
Senior midfielder Brown Blanton adds, “We might’ve had the best 11 (starting unit) in the state, but we didn’t play together.”
Cohesiveness has been the goal for the 2022 Mustangs, who take a 6-1 record and the No. 1 ranking in The Observer’s Sweet 16 poll into Monday night’s home match with No. 5-ranked Providence.
It starts with the coaching, say the players. Head coach Thomas “Bucky” McCarley pushes his team to be accountable to one another, Anderson said.
“We’re coached so well,” he adds. “Bucky works hard to make sure we’re seeing the big picture.”
The Mustangs lost an early-season match to Cardinal Gibbons, but about a half-dozen starters were taking college admissions standardized tests that day.
“We had some freshmen and sophomores moved into the starting lineup that day,” Blanton said.
Despite that, Myers Park lost only 3-2 and nearly tied the match.
“Bucky always says teams that deal with adversity well are the best teams,” Anderson said.
The three seniors say they are impressed with some of the younger players.
“We knew we’d have a strong senior class,” Anderson said. “But we’ve come to see that the younger guys are really contributing.”
“They’ve scored goals in big matches,” Boutin adds.
McCarley typically builds his teams around juniors and seniors, but sophomore Gavin Trosch has two assists and freshman Femi Ogunwale has scored a goal.
All this has come against a killer schedule – Cardinal Gibbons, private school power Rabun Gap, Hough, Weddington, Pine Lake Prep, and now Providence.
“We love it,” Boutin said of the schedule. “We want to face the toughest challenges.”
“Bucky likes it that way,” Blanton adds.
Anderson said that in his sophomore year, when COVID-19 forced the soccer season to move from autumn to late winter and the schedule was condensed, the Mustangs didn’t have those tough nonconference matches.
“We really missed the opportunity that season,” he said. “It makes us stronger to face a tough schedule.”
Big matches this week
MONDAY
Gray Stone Day (7-2-1) at Jay M. Robinson (9-0-1), 6 p.m. – The Bulldogs beat one Yadkin Valley 1A-2A challenger last week (Union Academy) and now face another. Robinson is averaging 5.6 goals a match.
No. 5 Providence (9-1-1) at No. 1 Myers Park (6-1), 7 p.m. – Match of the Week in the Charlotte area. Two very strong defensive teams match up.
TUESDAY
No. 11 Charlotte Country Day (10-2) at Providence Day (4-4-1), 7 p.m. – These are traditional CISAA rivals, and Providence Day is a dangerous team that has beaten Carmel Christian and lost only 1-0 to state power High Point Wesleyan.
WEDNESDAY
Porter Ridge (8-2-1) at Piedmont (9-0-2), 7 p.m. – The host Panthers have faced only one 4A opponent. This should be Piedmont’s toughest test so far, as the Pirates own a victory this season over No. 4 Concord.
No. 10 Christ the King (4-2-4) at Lincoln Charter (6-1-2), 7 p.m. – The visiting Crusaders try to slow down Lincoln Charter’s Antoni Ceciliano, who has scored 15 goals this season.
No. 4 Weddington (7-2) at Sun Valley (6-1-2), 7 p.m. – Along with Porter Ridge-Piedmont, the Southern Carolina 4A opens conference play with a pair of big matches.
THURSDAY
No. 13 Hibriten (6-1-3) at Lincoln Charter (6-1-2), 7 p.m. – Lincoln Charter has its second match against a ranked team in 24 hours.
No. 5 Providence (9-1-1) at No. 15 Garinger (8-3), 7 p.m. – Beating Providence would be a statement victory for Garinger’s resurgent program. The Wildcats lost 2-0 and 3-0 a year ago to Providence.
No. 12 Hickory Ridge (7-0-2) at No. 6 Lake Norman (6-1-4), 7 p.m. – Hickory Ridge has outscored opponents 31-2 and has seven players with three or more goals. Lake Norman has not allowed more than two goals in a match this season.
Steve Lyttle on Twitter: @slyttle
The Observer’s Sweet 16 Poll
| Rk. | School | Rec. | Class | Prvs. |
| 1. | Myers Park | 6-1 | 4A | 1 |
| 2. | Cox Mill | 8-0-3 | 4A | 4 |
| 3. | Concord | 4-1-2 | 3A | 3 |
| 4. | Weddington | 5-2 | 4A | 5 |
| 5. | Providence | 9-1-1 | 4A | 2 |
| 6. | Lake Norman | 6-1-4 | 4A | 6 |
| 7. | Hickory | 6-0-3 | 3A | 10 |
| 8. | Hough | 6-4-1 | 4A | 9 |
| 9. | Carmel Christian | 6-1-1 | IND | 12 |
| 10. | Christ The King | 4-2-4 | 1A | 13 |
| 11. | Charlotte Country Day | 10-2 | IND | NR |
| 12. | Hickory Ridge | 9-0-2 | 4A | NR |
| 13. | Hibriten | 6-1-3 | 3A | 11 |
| 14. | Gaston Day | 6-2 | IND | 16 |
| 15. | Garinger | 8-3 | 4A | 15 |
| 16. | Pine Lake Prep | 9-1 | 2A | NR |
Dropped out: Charlotte Latin (Ind.); Mooresville (4A); Butler (4A). On The Bubble: Piedmont (4A, 9-0-2); Hopewell (4A, 7-0-2); Jay M. Robinson (2A, 9-0-1); South Mecklenburg (4A, 5-3-2); Sun Valley (4A, 6-1-2); Charlotte Latin (Ind., 5-5-1).
