Waiting in the wings: Eagles J.V. soccer finishes season undefeated

The future is looking bright for Smyrna High’s soccer program.

Some talented young players are honing their skills at the junior varsity level, and they’ve grown accustomed to winning.

In fact, they didn’t lose a single game this season.

The 2009 Smyrna High J.V. soccer team, comprised entirely of sophomores and freshmen, finished the season undefeated, with nine wins, three ties and zero losses.

Over the course of the season, the J.V. Eagles scored 38 goals and allowed only eight.

Along the way, the J.V team posted some big wins against some tough opponents, including Indian River, Caesar Rodney and Caravel Academy.

They also held on for a tie in some other tough games, including a 2-2 tie against Sussex Tech to close out the season.

“This team simply focused on their job and went out with the mentality that they were equal to or better than any team we play, and that if we play our game, we would be successful,” said Smyrna J.V. coach Ryan Buchanan. “Our last game truly tested the mental toughness of the team as they had to scrap and claw to come away with the tie.”

Buchanan said the team’s most memorable win came against Milford. The Eagles were down 1-0 with just six minutes left, but Smyrna soared to a 3-1 win after netting three late goals before the end of regulation.

The strength of this year’s team was its balance, Buchanan said.

“We had a very talented lineup and we were able to shuffle players in and out at all different positions. The versatility of our players was a tremendous asset.”

Jordan Cabot led the Eagles in scoring with 10 goals, while Robbie McKeldin netted eight and Tugraberk Usul finished with seven.

Smyrna’s keeper for all 12 games was Jacob Stoner, who helped preserve six shutouts for the Eagles.

Buchanan said the defense was very strong all year with strong play from Max Kolakowski, Andrew Gilbert, Shane Cabot, J.W. Newlin and Chris Harris.

Kyle Branham did an excellent job controlling the midfield and we had good balance all over the field, Buchanan said. Sophomores Caleb Cannon and Conor Brewer were very strong outside midfield players.

Buchanan described freshman Dane Teel as the team’s "Mr. Everything," playing defense, midfield and forward.

“I am very proud of this team,” Buchanan said. “These boys have put in a lot of intelligent work and have fought hard to earn a great deal of respect from our opponents. They know that they should be proud of what they have accomplished, and they are, but they also know that their future lies on the varsity field and I am excited to see what each of them can contribute at that level.”


2009 SHS J.V. soccer results

Lake Forest         W 10-0
Indian River         W 3-2
Delmar                  W 3-1
Seaford                 T 1-1
Polytech                W 6-0
Cape Henlopen   W 1-0
Caesar Rodney    W 2-0
Sussex Central     T 1-1
Caravel                  W 2-0
Milford                    W 3-1
Dover                     W 4-0
Sussex Tech         T 2-2