The first game of the season was vs Francis Howell, but they weren’t prepared enough and lost 4-2. The game was on Aug. 28, James Naphakorn (11) and Brendan Lukunka (12) were able to score one goal each against them. Austin Kelly (12) was able to get 6 saves that game. 

On Saturday Sept. 20 they get to play Howell again in the St. Louis High School Champions League. So far in that league the Eagles have played Oakville but lost 2-1. They still have a chance to win the championship if they win vs. Francis Howell and St. Dominic. 

Many of the players think that the team has improved a ton and can take back their win. 

“Me and Corey [Lynch] are up top now and I think we connect really well and Brendan [Lukunka] who was a striker with me but now has dropped in the middle, is pressing the midfield better and everyone is just connecting better,” Naphakorn said. 

The reason Corey Lynch (12) was not a striker before and Lukunka had to take is spot, is because he suffered from a foot fracture. 

“I think we can win because we’ve got people back from injury (Corey Lynch) and we’ve been practicing better,” Cannon Nord (12) said. The boys have been working as hard as they can during practices to be the best compared to all the other teams. 

“Our formation has changed and that has really helped out the team and our chemistry has gotten a lot better too,” Hieu Do (12) said.

Moving players around and figuring out what is the best for the team is crucial to how they play. Communication and also just the bond of the players has increased since the start of the season and they believe that helps them too. 

Beating the undefeated team Rock Bridge has also brought up their confidence and they are ready to play Francis Howell, who has a 5-1 record currently. 

The team also knows how Francis Howell plays and can use that to their advantage from playing them last time.

“They have a really solid midfield so if we get beat in the midfield we are really screwed but our midfield is also playing more physically now so we will do better this time,” Naphakorn said.

“They were really physical and that we need to be more physical to beat them,” Nord said. 

“They only really have a couple good players and if we defend them well we should be able to keep the score under control,” Do said. 

The boys soccer team is very prepared to beat Francis Howell.