The JPII Crusaders boys soccer team will enter regionals in Humboldt this weekend looking to make some noise, and punch their ticket to provincials in Moose Jaw. (submitted photo/Shalen Fox)

By Martin Martinson

Bend it like Beckham

JPII soccer teams gear up for regionals weekend ahead

Oct 15, 2019 | 12:03 PM

As October hits its midway mark, and coloured leaves cover the once green soccer pitch, the soccer season is ramping up to playoff time.

The John Paul II Collegiate (JPII) soccer teams are preparing for regionals this weekend.

The boys team will travel to Humboldt to battle it out on the road, while the girls will play host for their regionals competition at home in the Battlefords.

The JPII girls soccer team saw consistent growth this season, and there’s hope their progress will lead to success at regionals this weekend in front of the hometown crowd. (submitted photo/Shalen Fox)

Shalen Fox, who coaches the boys team and helps out with the girls team at JPII, said regionals will prove a good test for each of the school’s teams.

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The Crusaders boys are about .500 on the season, and are coming off a third-place finish on the A-side in their last tournament action in Prince Albert.

Fox said the strength of the team is their leadership and ability to lock things down on the defensive side of the ball.

He added perhaps the most important thing for the team will be tapping into that next gear offensively to find success at the regional level and ultimately punch their ticket to provincials.

For the girls team, this season marks the first time in a couple of years the school has fielded a girls’ soccer club.

The weekend prior to Thanksgiving break, the girls earned their first win of the season against Yorkton in a shootout, the team that is hosting provincials this year.

Fox said that victory was the kind the team will look to build on moving forward into regionals.

“It does give them confidence,” he said of the victory. “Realizing they can beat teams after some close games against [clubs] from the region, seeing those results is only going to help us,” he added.

Perhaps most exciting for the school is the potential for future soccer success, with an overwhelming majority of both the boys and girls teams eligible to return next year.

The boys team features just a single Grade 12 student this season, while the girls team has just two seniors and a single Grade 11 with the rest of the roster being made up of Grade 9 and 10 students.

Fox said he believes the influx of youth getting involved with the sport, and their subsequent experience gained this season, can only bode well for the school’s soccer program moving forward.

“All of these experiences in close games is only going to pay off in the long run,” Fox said. “If we happen to qualify for provincials that is a bonus, and if not, just gaining the experience and knowing what it takes to get to provincials [will be valuable].”

Regionals will be held the weekend of Oct. 18 and 19, with provincials the following weekend, Oct. 25 and 26.

The top two boys teams at the regional level will head to provincials at Moose Jaw Central High School. The top two girls teams will advance to provincials at Sacred Heart High School in Yorkton.

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Martin.Martinson@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: MartyMartyPxP1