FORTVILLE — Of the Mt. Vernon Marauders 34 goals scored last season, 28 of them were recorded by a now-graduated senior player.
At first glance, that would pose a major challenge to overcome in 2020 for Mt. Vernon boys soccer coach Matt Mayhew and his Marauders.
Not quite, Mayhew believes.
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With a solid group of underclassmen joining the fray this fall and six seniors on the roster, which Mayhew has worked with over the course of his 16 years at Mt. Vernon, the Marauders have plenty of talent to improve on last season’s 9-9 record.
“We graduated 11, but I’ve got six seniors this year. It’s a good group. Most of them were on varsity for me last year, so they’re kind of my returning blood,” said Mayhew, who is entering his sixth campaign as head coach. “We’re relying on a lot of juniors and sophomores also.”
Gone is All-Hoosier Heritage Conference selection Drew Heitman (four goals, two assists) along with the team’s top-two scorers overall, but senior Aden Cappelletti is back after posting three goals through 15 matches in 2019.
“We graduated Jacob (Knepper) and Drew (Heitman) and Logan (Angelopulos), but (Aden) Cappelletti is one of our returning players who got a couple of goals for us last year. We’re going to turn to his experience, and then hopefully some of our younger boys can step up,” Mayhew said.
Along with Cappelletti, the Marauders will showcase most of it’s returning upperclassmen expertise on defense anchored by senior goalkeeper Noah Whitehouse.
Whitehouse will play ahead of — and will continue to mentor — sophomore Bryce Glazier, who returns as the team’s primary backup in goal and will see time as his development progresses.
Whitehouse logged 1,328 minutes with 138 saves and 28 goals allowed in 17 matches as a junior. He averaged 8.1 saves per game with three shutouts and nine wins.
As a sophomore, Whitehouse allowed 18 goals in 17 matches with 136 saves and five shutouts. He cracked the varsity lineup as a freshman, finishing his six appearances with 12 saves and two goals allowed.
As a three-year starter, along with senior defender Taylor Lorsung, Whitehouse and the Marauders’ defense could be difficult to run through.
“(The seniors) are going to play big roles because we kind of have them all over the field,” Mayhew said. “We have Cappelletti up front. Noah in goal, and this will be his third year starting, so he’s one of our most experienced. Lorsung will be on the back line.
“Most of them are on the back line to be honest. They will be more on the defensive side, so they are going to help mold the young guys and get us up to speed quick.”
Other key contributors on offense will be junior Tyler Webb and sophomores Zach Johnson and Evan LeRoy. Junior Jordan Small has impressed in the midfield.
The Marauders finished with a 3-4 record in the HHC last season and fell to rival Greenfield-Central, 3-0, in the sectional championship game this past October.
Greenfield-Central captured the HHC title in 2019 and won its fourth straight sectional title and sixth overall since 2011 last year. Mt. Vernon’s most recent sectional championship trophy was hoisted in 2015.
“I guess you could say (it’s a rebuilding year) because you lose so many and you’re bringing up so many, but the sessions we’ve been able to have we’ve looked pretty good,” Mayhew said. “We’ve looked ahead of where we thought we’d be, which is always exciting to see. We’re just ready to get started. You can only do so much intersquad stuff, and my boys are ready for that.”
The Marauders open the season at home on Saturday against Hamilton Southeastern at 10:30 a.m. The HHC portion of their schedule begins on Saturday, Aug. 22 on the road at New Castle.
“We come out with HSE right out of the gate. Having all of our summer games cancelled, we want to get out there. You can only play your JV so much, but just getting up to speed with a top program like that helps you know where you’re at,” Mayhew said. “I’m hoping we’re there.”
Most importantly, they are on the field. Several of the Marauders’ players have stayed sharp by playing club soccer this summer, and they’ve adjusted quickly to IHSAA outlined COVID-19 safety guidelines and protocols to move the season forward.
“My boys have done well. They’ve done what they needed to do and try to stay as safe as they can,” Mayhew said. “You just keep your fingers crossed that nobody gets (coronavirus) and nobody gets sick. That’s more important than the soccer part of it, but you do hope these boys get the experience of playing together again.”
