The Sedona Red Rock High School boys and girls soccer teams are gearing up for another competitive season, with both teams earning good results after their first few games.

The girl’s team, after exiting last year’s Arizona Interscholastic Association Division IV playoffs in a 1-0 quarterfinal loss to Pusch Ridge Christian Academy, now starts six freshmen, the majority of whom are on defense.

Despite it being the first high school minutes most of the team has seen, assistant coach Dan Surber was pleased with the team’s performances, which included a 2-2 tie with North High School, a 5-1 win over Odyssey Institute and a 2-0 victory over Tempe High School in the Desert Cup Classic last week.

“We lost eight seniors last year,” Surber said. “It’s a different team with the new freshmen coming in, but with the experience we have on the team we feel good this year.”
Perhaps the most notable loss was that of striker Mason Feldtkeller, who last season tied for the sixth-highest goals total in Arizona with 32. But Surber does not see any problem in replacing those goals.

“We have three seniors, two of them with a lot of experience,” Surber said. “And putting a freshman up top, too, we actually have more options this year.”

One problem the team continues to have is a lack of numbers, Surber pointed out. Barring injury, the team has just 14 players on the roster, leaving only three substitutes at third-year head coach Juan Carlos Aguilar’s disposition.

In terms of last week’s games, Surber highlighted the team’s defensive performances despite its youth at the back.

“We possessed the ball well and our defense [was good] basically, which is pretty much all freshmen but very composed,” Surber said. “For being so young they did well.”

The one place he saw the Scorpions slip up was in organization, failing to hold a tight formation throughout the entire game. He thought that for a few minutes each game the team would switch off.

Last year the team went 11-5-2 playing in Division IV Section III, but this year plays in Division 3A Region 1 for league play, and Conference 3A for playoffs.

On the boy’s side, the team has started the season exhibiting a lot of firepower under first-year head coach Ruben Philo. With a 2-0 record thus far, the team has scored 14 goals and allowed just one.

The Scorpions opened the season with a 5-1 win over Tonopah Valley followed by a 9-0 thrashing of fellow Conference 3A rival North Phoenix Preparatory Academy.

Both Scorpions teams took on the visiting Wickenburg Wranglers, but results were not available at press time.

The girls team next plays at 4 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 7, at Scottsdale Christian Academy.

The boys team will compete in the Coyotes Soccer Classic Friday and Saturday, Dec. 9 and 10, at Arizona Lutheran Academy.