In a battle of undefeated teams in district play, the varsity boys soccer team lost 2-1 to the LASA Raptors (4-0) in both teams’ fourth district match at Nelson Field on Friday. The Knights (3-1) were down two players as junior Gus Ehlers and senior co-captain Dash Levy were out for the game. While Ehlers was just out of town, Levy earned two yellow cards in the previous match against Northeast on Tuesday, which knocked him out of Friday’s game.

Senior midfielder Tucker Martinson said that while the loss of Ehlers and Levy initially affected the team’s mentality, the Knights were able to overcome it. 

“I think we played a lot better than we were expecting, especially seeing we were missing two of our biggest offensive players,” Martinson said. “I could tell from the start a few of our players were nervous because it was our first true challenge, but as the game went on they settled in and made it a close game.”

After a goal by LASA six minutes in, Martinson scored the Knights’ only goal 11 minutes later by tapping in junior center-back Speight Twohey’s free kick. 

“After [the Raptors] scored their first goal early in, I could tell the team spirit dropped a lot, and it seemed like LASA gained all the momentum,” Martinson said. “[But after I scored], the momentum completely switched, and it seemed like we had control of the game.”

Although the teams were well-matched, LASA scored the winning goal off a deflection 38 minutes into the first half. 

“It was a tight game, with both teams trading attacks,” Head coach Nick Martin wrote in an Instagram post on @mccallumboyssoccer.

Twohey felt the loss could be attributed more to bad luck than to a lack of skill on the Knights’ part.

“It was definitely an upsetting outcome, but I don’t think we had a bad game,” he said. “The second goal was very unlucky, and the fact that Dash and Gus were out is also unlucky.”

The game against LASA came just a day after the University Interscholastic League’s district realignment for 2024-2026. McCallum and LASA will continue district play against each other, but the new alignment means new district opponents are in the Knights’ future.

The Knights and Raptors will next year face Anderson, Bastrop and Cedar Creek in district play in place of departing district opponents Eastside, LBJ, Northeast and Travis.

“I think over the past few years [LASA] definitely has been emerging as a new rival, but with Anderson coming back into our district too, it should be interesting,” Martinson said.

While the JV-A boys soccer team beat the LASA Raptors 1-0 in Friday night’s match at Noack Field, 24 hours before the game, the team had doubts. 

“Our captain [sophomore Sam Schuette] got sick the night before, so we had to adjust for that,” sophomore Yonas Romberg said. “It was stressful at the beginning because he is one of our best players and we were playing one of the best teams.” 

Romberg said sophomore Waylon De Atley stepped up to fill the role as captain. In addition to filling the leadership position, Romberg feels De Atley was a key player on the field in Friday’s game too. 

“He [De Atley] created many goal-scoring opportunities, which assisted in our game-winning goal,” Romberg said. 

While De Atley’s leadership efforts fostered the team’s success in the game, it was sophomore Brandon Reynaga who put the ball in the back of the net. 

“JV-A won 1-0 behind a great individual effort by Brandon,” Martin said in an Instagram post on Friday night.

Receiving the ball at the midfield, Reynaga was able to shoot and score to give the Knights a first-half lead. The teams stalemated from that point on, making Reynaga’s tally the game-winner.

The JV-A Knights are currently rolling with a 9-0-1 record after they tied Northeast 1-1 last Tuesday. Romberg said that as the season continues, the team needs to work on one main skill. 

“Communication is the biggest thing,” Romberg said. “That means having everyone talking more and telling each other where we want teammates to be so more passes can be completed. It’s something that can always be improved on and it’s something we will always be working on.” 

The JV-B soccer team also played Friday night but, unlike their sub-varsity counterparts, the JV-B Knights lost 5-0. 

Freshman Max Tomfohr said that going into Friday’s game at Noack Field, the team knew the Raptors would be tough opponents, resulting in the practice of specific skills. 

“We practiced getting wide and finding passes with combinations,” Tomfohr said. “We hoped it would help [us] maintain better possession when playing LASA.” 

Tomfohr said now that the game is over, the JV-B Knights can learn from this game to look forward to their rematch against LASA on Feb 28. 

“I feel they outran us on some plays, which lead to goals for them,” Tomfohr said. “I think we can work on speed and agility alongside defending one-to-one.”