Prior Lake Varsity Soccer Team Starts the Season Well with High Hopes

After finishing last year’s season with a loss in the state quarterfinals, the Prior Lake boys’ varsity soccer team is off to a 7-1-3 start to this year’s season.

The team’s early success doesn’t seem to be a surprise to any of the players, as they have put in a significant amount of work to reach this point. Led by coach Mike Shebuski, the team’s work ethic, mentality, and practice regimen has set them up for success.

“Our team works together well, we pass the ball around, and we have a great coach. I think the combination of these is what has really led to our success,” said senior forward Tyler Trachsel, who returned to play soccer for his senior season after taking a couple of years off to focus on hockey.

The team’s most recent game took place on Tuesday, September 18 at Shakopee West Junior High School, where the Lakers took down the Shakopee Sabers 3-0, extending their win streak to three games.

The team’s success is due in part to the team’s frequent post-game discussions about what they could have done better in their previous matches. Coach Shebuski uses each game as a learning experience to develop new drills for players and the team to improve upon the parts of their game where they have shown weakness in the past.

Although the team has been playing well overall, not all of their games have had the outcome they hoped for. Out of the team’s three ties on the season, two of them have had a final score of 1-1. These ties can be attributed to a somewhat inconsistent offense, which is something the team has been working on and hopes to have resolved by the end of the regular season.

Regardless of whether they are winning or losing, one thing that has been important to the team is ensuring that none of the players get injured. According to Trachsel, the team has a specific set of warm-ups that they perform before every game. This routine includes performing a variety of stretches and passing the ball around to teammates, as well as running as a group.

The team is looking forward to their next matchup against Burnsville on Tuesday, September 25, where they plan to use their momentum to keep their win streak alive. “We’re going to win most of our games because we work on stuff we missed in each of our previous matches,” said senior center-midfielder Fabio Tenorio.

The Prior Lake boys’ varsity soccer team warming up before a game.