WAC loaded with strong contenders
By all standards, the 2021 Western Athletic Conference season was highly successful, especially when considering perennial conference champion and state contender Dodge City.
The Red Demons, under the watchful eye of Coach Saul Hernandez (entering his 8th season for the Demons), didn’t repeat their 2020 Class 6A state championship, but they did roll through the WAC season unbeaten at 8-0-0 and reached the state quarterfinals before a heartbreaking 2-1 loss to Wichita North that provided their only loss in a 17-1-1 campaign.
Hernandez’ Demons have now won 23 consecutive WAC matches and their chief rival, Garden City, had a stellar 2021 season with a 12-5-0 record, two of the losses coming to Dodge City and another to power Wichita North.
In the preseason coach’s poll, the Demons were selected to repeat as WAC champions, followed by Garden City, Liberal, Hays and Great Bend.
DODGE CITY
Mascot: Red Demons
Class: 6A
2021 Record: Won 17, Lost 1, Tied 1; 8-0 WAC, 1st place.
Head Coach: Saul Hernandez (8th season, 127-14-1 at Dodge City; 53-3-0 in WAC)
Top Returners: Irwin Macias, Sr., Attacking center (9 goals, 8 assists), 1st team all-WAC, Player of the Year, 1st team all-State Class 6A, Kansas Soccer Coaches Association; Angel Lopez, Jr., Forward, 1st team all-WAC, 2nd team all-state 6A; Aron Martinez, Jr., Forward, 2nd team all-WAC, honorable mention all-state; David Garcia, Jr., Center.
Coach’s Comments: “I am very excited about this season because the boys put in a lot of work in the weight room and the soccer field this summer. We have some key games that will help prepare us for the post season. We start out with a tough game versus Bishop Carroll who is always one of the top teams in 5A in the state. Another key game is against the defending 5A state champions Blue Valley Southwest in October. The conference is always tough as I believe it is a strong conference and it shows because WAC teams always make a good run in the playoffs. The goal is always the same, to be playing in November when the final four takes place. I think we have the personnel to get there, but we will have to be consistent and focused through the whole season. We also have an exciting new staff with 3 new coaches that were state champions in our program as players, and it is exciting for the team for them to come back to our program and take on a new role.”
GARDEN CITY
Mascot: Buffaloes
Class: 6A
2021 Record: Won 12, Lost 5, Tied 0 (6-2-0, WAC, 2nd)
Coach: Jose Vital-Caro (3rd season, 18-13-1)
Top Returners: Erick Tamayo, Sr., Defender (2nd team all-WAC); David Hernandez, Sr., Forward (2nd team all-WAC); Chris Barragan, Sr., Midfielder; Anthony Fierro, So., Midfielder; Joshua Negron, Jr., Midfielder; Emiliano Garcia, Sr., Midfielder; Alex Macias, Sr., Defender; Juan Garcia, Sr., Defender; Ezayn Deatherage, So., Defender.
Coach’s Comments: “I believe we will compete for the WAC title with Dodge City. We have a lot of experience (9 starters) and we’ve had a very strong summer of working hard together. We have some great incoming freshmen and some foreign exchange students who just came from overseas. It will be excited to be building a high-performance team. The boys have embraced the idea of working hard towards winning something. I’m excited to see how far they will go.”
GREAT BEND
Mascot: Panthers
Class: 5A
2021 Record: Won 6, Lost 10, Tied 1; WAC (2-5-1, 3rd)
Coach: Chuy Loera (7th season)
Top Returners: Alex Galindo; Gustavo Alvarado.
Coach’s Comments: “We will be a young team with a roster made up mostly of freshmen and sophomores. Without a single senior on the team, we may be one of the youngest teams in the state. By no means will this make the Panthers an easy win for anyone that plays them. This team is determined to grow, improve and win games this season.”
HAYS
Mascot: Indians
Class: 5A
2021 Record: Won 5, Lost 11, Tied 1; WAC (1-6-1, 5th)
Coach: Daniel Kelly (1st season), 4 years assistant coach
Top Returners: Diego Muller, Senior, Right Wing, 1st team all-WAC; Brantlee Stabb, Jr., Left Wing, 1st team all-WAC; Kyzer Fox, Junior, Left Back, 2nd team all-WAC; Edwin Muller, Jr.; Karsten Koenke, Sr.; Cooper Johnson, So.; Landen Clark, Sr.
Coach’s Comments: “I am excited for the season. Having had zero seniors last year allows us to bring a lot of varsity experience back. We hope to lean on several key returning players to use that experience to help us win big games.”
LIBERAL
Mascot: Redskins
Class: 6A
2021 Record: Won 5, Lost 11, Tied 1; WAC (2-6-0, 4th); Lost first round in 6A regionals to Wichita North.
Coach: Carlos Ruiz (2nd season)
Top Returners: Emmanuel Ortuno, Sr., Center Back (1st team all-WAC); Giovanny Reyes, Jr. Center Back (2nd team all-WAC); Suain Moncayo, So., Forward (2nd team all-WAC).
Coach’s Comments: “We an experienced, yet young team. Our juniors and sophomores this year got a lot of playing time/starts last season. We get all of them back with all of that experience, as well as more physicality and confidence. Our expectations have gone up and the team is motivated to have a successful season after a tough one last year.”
