It's going to be difficult for the Merrill prep boys soccer team to top its first match under new coach Luis Mendoza.
The Bluejays scored three goals in the final 5 minutes, the last one on a breakaway by Christian Halbach with 12 seconds left, to pull out a 7-7 tie with host Medford in a wild season opener Tuesday night in Stetsonville.
Keenan Stellingworth pulled Merrill within 7-5 with a 25-yard blast, then collected the rebound of a shot off the post and finished to make it a one-goal game with 2 minutes remaining to set up Halbach's 90th-minute heroics.
The teams' junior varsity teams played at the same time in Medford, with Merrill winning 8-4 in another high-scoring match.
Wisconsin: M Jordan Altekruse, sr., Neenah; D Teon Fountain, sr., Madison Memorial; M Vuk Latinovich, sr., Brookfield Central; M Winston Markusse, sr., Brookfield East; D Spencer Pearson, sr., Oregon; F Peter Raymonds, sr., Brookfield East; M Garrett Spellman, sr., Mount Horeb; F Brandon Strobel, sr., Kettle Moraine; F Sean Surtees, sr., Madison Memorial; D Alex Young, sr., Madison Memorial.
School | Previous coach | New coach |
---|---|---|
Baraboo | Sean Breitzman | Nathanael Bresson |
Beaver Dam | Bobby Von Kaenel | David Elgersma |
Columbus | Kevin Crombie | Paul Genco |
Franklin | Tim Lemke | Greg Springman |
Germantown | Omar Sethi | Todd Fisher |
Green Bay NEW Lutheran | Jeff Schaefer | Matt Zeitler |
Green Bay Southwest | Jason Weier | Jay Draves |
Janesville Craig | Michael Hook | Garrett McCabe |
Janesville Parker | Jason Bier | Abilio Monteiro |
Lomira | Mauricio Bolanos | Jessica Benson |
Madison West | Chris Vasquez | Peter Dermody |
Merrill | Chris Behrens | Luis Mendoza |
New Berlin West | Hansi Herzog | Matt Drago |
Ozaukee | John Annis | Bradley Doro |
Port Washington | Mike Bultman | Sean O'Brien |
Racine Lutheran | Westin Swager | Kevin McNamara |
Reedsburg | Rich King | Tyler Stowers |
Schofield D.C. Everest | C.J. Hansen | Manny Pollock |
Sugar River | Dick Sanders | Jake Ziehr |
Sun Prairie | Will Wayland | Chris Mitchell |
West Bend West | Ryan Stone | Kyle Cruse |
Westosha Central | Stuart Swanson | Jonathan Kao |
Do you know of other prep coaching changes for the 2014 season? Let us know at wisconsinsoccercentral@gmail.com