Bright artificial light illuminates the field as the sun sets in the distance, bringing the temperature down with it. By 6 p.m. the scoreboard finishes its warm-up countdown and an intimidating 40 minutes shines down on the team. With temperatures below 40 degrees, boys varsity soccer is met with challenging circumstances they must overcome to win. 

For the team’s nine seniors, it is the last conference game before the playoffs and possibly the last game they will play in Huntley High School’s stadium. With this daunting idea and all the looming possibilities, the team put their best foot forward for an all-or-nothing game.

Almost immediately, the first goal against Woodstock North was scored by number 18, Isaac Jacobo. This was just the beginning of Huntley’s domination. Following this breakthrough were four more goals. 

In the second half, a sixth and final goal was made by number 19, Hunter Hall. No players held back for senior night, a testament to all the work they put in this year and the idea of it taking more than just good players to have a good team.

“I think it’s just building character around the whole team like building all the chemistry as we have a lot of new kids that came up from JV,” senior and team captain Zach Heitkemper said.

The team is primarily made up of seniors, but there are a handful of juniors along with a sophomore ready to play. There are some big senior shoes to fill, but based on tonight’s performance, it is to be assumed that there will be no problems.

“Next season, we’re going to have some junior leadership obviously fit into that senior role, looking to hopefully carry over a lot of what we’re trying to accomplish offensively and defensively,” Coach Daniel Regan said. 

The next step in the season is regionals and then, hopefully, the playoffs. The team’s regional game is on October 18 in Elgin so make sure to go support boys soccer. 

“We have high hopes to make it as far as last year, if not farther,” junior Gavin Eagan said.  

The team has come a long way since the beginning of the season. With highs and lows seen in all players. Despite this, the team was able to finalize their conference season with one outstanding win. 

“I think they were challenged to overcome inconsistencies with a lot of wins and losses back to back, and having to overcome the highs and lows of both winning and losing,” Regan said.

This may be the end of an era for many, but for others, it is a new beginning and a chance for leadership. 

“We’re still going to be pretty young across the board with a lot of seniors graduating, and I think we can expect next year to look similar to this year in a lot of regards,” Regan said. 

Even with the year’s close, boys varsity soccer will continue to remain solid with new skills and relationships emerging.