“We’re building on the soft spots from last year and looking to be a lot more competitive this season,” stated Ontario boys’ soccer coach Greg Fraley.
The team welcomes back eight returning starters, having graduated only three starters from the previous year.
Although the program lacks a junior varsity team, it has grown from last year’s 15 players to approximately 20 players.
Fraley stated, “We were close to having a junior varsity team this year, but unfortunately didn’t get enough participation. We should definitely have one next year, though.”
With the transition to the Northern Ohio League (NOL), the Warriors will face some new competition, to which Fraley stated, “We don’t have much information on the NOL teams—we do know that some NOL schools, like Shelby, don’t even have soccer programs.”
He added that Mansfield Christian (a non-conference team) has always been tough competition.
“Our strengths this year are the fact that we have a lot of returners from last year. Plus, for the past six years, I’ve been the first coach to have stuck around longer than one season, so we’re able to build a lot on consistency. The team knows my expectations and what my formations are, so instead of teaching the entire team, I get to teach the incoming freshman, whom I’ve coached a lot of them in recreation league, so they, too, have an idea of my coaching style.”
The team lost its leading scorer from last year, Christian Meister. However, there is fresh talent from a younger crowd looking to make an impact this season.
Sophomore, Erik Klimczynski, was recognized as second-team all area last soccer season and is believed to be a valuable asset for the team this year.
“He’s a beast,” stated Fraley, “All in all, we’re a well-rounded team. We may not be a fast team, but we’re smart, and if they can take the knowledge of the game and position themselves well to compensate for the speed, then they’ll be good.”
