Our very own Kearsley Boys Varsity Soccer just had a season no will ever forget.

They went into the season with high expectations and proved the other schools wrong.

When people play Kearsley, they go into the game thinking it’s a win. These boys made the opponents work harder than ever.

With the last game being against the number three, Linden Eagles in the Metro League, this game meant a lot to the team and supporters.

It was a great game. Both teams were fighting hard, however, the Eagles put the first point on the board. The boys didn’t give up. They couldn’t give up.

Just seconds before the first half ended, the Kearsley Hornets worked together to score and made it a tie game.

After the half, the Hornets and Eagles were both eager to score to seal the game. The defense on both sides were outstanding and kept the game closer than it already was.

There were many chances to take the lead for the two teams, but neither could find the back of the net.

While in the box, one of our players was fouled, which ended up being a penalty kick. Senior Caden Saxton was the one who was taking the kick. With the game on the line, this couldn’t have been easy.

He was waiting for the referees whistle.

The crowd goes quiet. He scored. The hornets were up 2-1!

They had to keep the intensity up to keep the lead. It was a tough fight with the Eagles getting a bit physical, but the Hornets stayed on top.

They ended the regular season with a record of 16-3!

That is such an accomplishment for these young men.

Senior, Jalen Gatica explains how it felt throughout the season they had.

“It felt super breaking the school record for wins in a single soccer season and my own teammates breaking schools records as well. We worked hard throughout this season and it paid off, even though we lost districts, I’m glad I was there when it all happened,” spoke Gatica.

Going into districts, the team had high standards for themselves.

Entering into the first game, which was the semi-finals, the boys were pumped. The Hornets were facing the Holly Broncos.

They started off strong and ended strong.

Kearsley’s pair of forwards, senior Caden Saxton and junior Antonio Romero capitalized on two goals in the first half.

The Broncos ended up tying the game, but that meant nothing to our boys. In the second half junior Lucas Groulx found Saxton with the game winning goal to end the game with a 3-2 win!

The second game was against the Goodrich Martians. This was going to be a tougher game, but a good one to watch.

Both teams started off strong. They held their own ground and played their own game.

At the end of the half, it was still tied at zero.

The second half was something the boys won’t get over. Despite all of their hard work, the Martians scored. They would shortly after score again to extend their lead. It was now 2-0 which ended up being the final score.

The Hornets hopes for advancement and a district championship were now over.

Watching the Martians celebrate just feet away wasn’t easy for anyone.

Even though the boys lost, the season was still a success. They accomplished more than a boys’ soccer team has done in many years here at Kearsley. They made history within the 2023 season, and they plan to be back next year to end their season with even more success.

Junior, Saul Granados was unfortunately out this season from a injury. He speaks on how he felt about the season the boys had.

“I feel like there was many ups and downs, but the main thing is we all stayed positive and competed all season long. Of course I felt the emptiness on the field without me, but the boys worked around it and got the job done,” stated Granados.

At the end of each season for high school sports, the coaches all come together and vote on the players who impressed them the most.

These players are honored by being to a district teams based off of their skill along with sportsmanship.

This year there were six boys from the Kearsley Boys Soccer Program who were put on the All-League Teams.

On First Team were Caden Saxton and Antonio Romero.

On Second Team was junior Lucas Groulx.

On Third Team was junior Carlos Granados.

Lastly, senior Daniel Sanson and sophomore Aiden Tipton got Honorable Mentions.

However, every player on the team contributed to the accomplishments throughout the season.

Everyone in the Kearsley Community are beyond proud for what these boys have done in the 2023 soccer season.

Next year is just going to be even better and they all are very excited.