Prep Boys’ Soccer- Thursday night will be a big night for a trio of local boys’ soccer teams with hopes of getting to travel to Des Moines for the 2025 State Tournament. Two will have to pull off upsets on the road, while one gets to try and head back to state in front of the home crowd. Here’s a look at the local matchups.
Class 1A Substate 5
For Mediapolis, this will be their fourth trip to the Substate Championship in the last five years and the Bulldogs would certainly enjoy a change of fortunes, going 0-3 in the trio of games and being outscored 15 to 1 in the process.
To add on to the drama, Mediapolis will get a rematch of their 2023 championship contest against West Liberty where they were shutout 5-0. The Comets enter the game 15-1 with their lone loss coming against Regina Catholic. They have since won the last five games by a combined score of 22 to 3.
The game is set to start at 7 pm.
Mediapolis Player to Watch: Lance Ludens (20 goals)
West Liberty Player to Watch: David Hernandez (87.5% save percentage)
“It’s a blessing, honestly. I moved from first season here, you know, doing things that we’ve never done in this school before. I’m just happy, thankful to God for all my teammates, I’ve been able to spend this time with and just enjoy this season and hopefully continue this run.”
Class 2A Substate 5
#6 Burlington Notre Dame has enjoyed a return to form after finishing last year with a 9-9 record. The Nikes from 2019 to 2023 advanced to at least the Substate Championship, including state tournament berth in 2022 and a state championship in 2021.
A big reason for the team’s success this year was the transfer of Alessandro Markomichelakis from Mediapolis. Last year, as a junior, he helped the Bulldogs capture the SEISC crown from Notre Dame and in his senior season he helped put it back in the Nikes’ possession.
Notre Dame will get to play the game at home at 7 pm against 11-3-2 Maquoketa. This will be the first matchup between the two teams as Brayden DeForest will look to make things difficult on the Nikes, who have struggled this season against the upper echelon of talent.
Notre Dame Player to Watch: Alessandro Markomichelakis (30 goals and 10 assists)
Maquoketa Player to Watch: Luc Schumacher (36 goals and 5 assists)
Class 2A Substate 6
Mt. Pleasant captured their first winning season since 2019 and their first conference championship since 2013, the same year that the Panthers qualified for the state tournament. They fell 3-1 to Storm Lake in the quarterfinals that year.
In Mt. Pleasant’s history, they also qualified for the fall state tournament back in 1995, the first year for their program under Tom Alaniz. They lost to Pella Chrisitan 3-2 in the first round, then 5-0 in the consolation against Western Christian.
A big reason for their success has been first year members in German exchange student Samuel Schaapen, contributing 25 points for the season, and sophomore Brandon Veloz who tabbed a goal and an assist in their win over Fairfield in the semifinals. Veloz talked about how special this team is,
“It’s a blessing, honestly. I moved from first season here, you know, doing things that we’ve never done in this school before. I’m just happy, thankful to God for all my teammates, I’ve been able to spend this time with and just enjoy this season and hopefully continue this run.”
Returning members such as Dylan White, who has led the team in goals the past two years, and goalie Xachary LeBlanc has helped the cause as well. Despite the uptick in offense, head coach Rocco Russo wants to lean on the defense,
“Our defense 100%, I mean Aiden Humble, Abraham Cass, Cohen Cass, and Jackson Newman. Those guys don’t get any stats on bounds, but you know, without those guys, I mean, we’re not much of A soccer team. Those guys are solid back there. And I mean, our goalkeeper Zach is the real deal. You know, he’s really good. He’s been putting in working. It’s his turn to shine.”
They will have to travel north to take on 12-1-3 Williamsburg at 7 pm. The Raiders are looking to avenge a 1-0 loss to Assumption in the Substate Championship game last year in front of their home crowd.
Mt. Pleasant Player to Watch: Xachary LeBlanc (83.3% save percentage)
Williamsburg Player to Watch: Elias Schanz (88.6% save percentage)