MOUNT VERNON — The varsity boys soccer season ended Friday night on their archrivals’ turf as the Mount Vernon Mustangs won 1-0 to advance to the State Tournament. The Mustangs largely kept the Spartans contained throughout the first half, allowing limited incursions into their own territory. Mount Vernon’s Jaxon Anderson broke through Solon’s stingy defense to score with 35:12 remaining in the second half. Solon’s offense kicked into high gear in the final ten minutes but were denied a goal.
“It’s just two really good teams,” said head coach Noah Sigworth. “The second half, the ball just bounces one way or another and that’s the difference in a game this tight.”
They’re a great soccer team and they’re going to have great success in the tournament.
Would’ve loved to have been on the right side of it but a ball bouncing one way or another is the difference in a close game like this.”
Sigworth said the team’s focus this season has been on having ‘grit.’
“It’s passion and perseverance over time and how we started the season and how we finished…incredible growth, right? Showing up every day with passion, having that goal in mind, and understanding that wins and losses matter but they’re learning moments. So, the perseverance shows up there as well and you saw how much it influences them toward the end of the game.”
Sigworth, in his first season at the helm, took over a program that went 3-6-1 in the WaMaC East last year and 6-10-1 overall. This year the Spartans were 5-3-3 in the WaMaC East and 9-5-5 overall. Sigworth points to his assistant coach and the soccer dads.
“Credit to Alex Proehl, my assistant. The amount of time that Alex and other parents put into these kids…I inherited all that work they put in and investing in these kids from a really young age. Alex is the foundation upon which this program is able to stand. I just had the privilege of stepping in and highlighting the things that they do well.”
Sigworth also credits his seniors for easing the transition and cultivating success.
“They’re our backbone,” he said. “Stepping in as a first year head coach, having those guys to lean on… Tucker Spence, Eli Cash, Tripp Johnson…their ability to lead totally transformed what Solon Soccer will be in the future. They persevered through the early season stumbles and found a way through. We wouldn’t have been able to get through that without them. All credit to those people.”
The Spartans lose Jake Grimm, Cash, Kacey Craig, Ethan Ulch, Spence, Caden Mai, Rene Meza, Johnson, Trendon Walker, Ryan Locke, and Jadyn Bevans; 11 seniors, a blow to any program. However, Sigworth, while acknowledging the impact, sees only positives moving forward.
“We’re really optimistic about next year. Obviously we’re losing a lot of seniors and on paper it looks like we might not be as successful, but I would never count out a Solon soccer team from now on. We will play hard; we will play together.”