![At the bottom of the third inning, the Lions are still scoreless. Rowe stands at home plate, preparing to bat, while Vandenbrink stands off to the side as the next batter up. Despite having the bases loaded, the team was unable to score any runs. “It’s just the beginning of the season. We’re just going to be playing out best by June, [and] that’s where champions are,” Rowe said.](https://wlhsnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/IMG_3077-1200x900.jpg)
![All smiles. The group poses for a photo with last year’s book, “This is Our House,” along with their award for third Best in Show. Meikle, who was an Editor-in-Chief for the yearbook last year as well, holds both and stands at the center of the group. “That was an amazing feeling, going and grabbing the third place award,” Meikle said. “All of it paid off. I cried so much over that book, being able to receive [the award] was one of the highlights of my high school career, it was like the coolest thing ever.”](https://wlhsnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/8bookpose_philly-1200x800.jpg)
JV boys soccer finished off the season undefeated with a 13-0-2 record. The team is powered by a strong freshman class, eight freshman players either made varsity or JV.
The JV boys immediately started strong; the Lions refused to let anyone score on them for the first six games. These shutout performances are attributed to their goalie, Nick Bardana, junior, and a powerful defensive back line. Offensively, Johnny Tudorache, sophomore, forward, is an important player for the team having scored the most goals this season. Team chemistry, a great coach and helpful practices are reasons why the team went undefeated this season.
“We have really good team chemistry because most of us have played together on a club team called Arsenal. We won state twice and were the best in the Northwest multiple times. So we know how each other plays and know everyone’s strengths and weaknesses, this helps a lot.” Ben Sebastian, freshman, defender, said.
The players agree that team chemistry is due to a good coach. Coach Henry Duwounah has made many beneficial decisions this year. One key change being to play the team in a 4-4-2 (four defenders, four midfielders, two forwards), a decision that has helped the team score while maintaining the defensive structure.
“Henry [the coach] has helped us out a ton this year. He makes us work on certain skills through drills that need improving. He is one of the reasons we have been winning all these games,” Connor Bailey, freshman, left midfielder, said.
Duwounah believes practice is a crucial part of how the team plays, functions and develops. Practice allows the players to hone in on the skills they are lacking and have good friendly competition from each other.
“A normal practice starts with warm up and stretches, then we do some passing drills, afterwards Henry usually has us work on different skill sets.” Sebastian said. “For example one day we might do shooting, the next we might scrimmage or play a possession keep away type game.” Bailey has a similar outlook in regard to practice.
“Practices are good because we get the work in but we also have fun at the same time. We like to mess around but when it’s time to get serious we always put our heads down and focus on our touches, defensive technique or whatever we are working on at the time.” Bailey said.
The JV boys were ranked number one in the league because of their team chemistry, strong coaching and useful practices. Only scored on twice could not have been accomplished without the help of Bardana, Tudorache, and a powerful defensive line. The freshman class’s chemistry should make them a force to be reckoned with next season.
