By Ella Franzman – Editor-In-Chief

The Jonathan Law Boys soccer team kicked off their season earlier this week and are super pumped for the 2023 season.   

The Lawmen are led by captains; Cooper Fitzgerald, Elliot Melgar and Declan Wywoda. Their next game is Tuesday, September 19 against Sheehan at Lawmen Stadium. 

“I am looking to see how we compete against the top teams in the state,” head coach Mike Gruber said. “Our schedule doesn’t have any easy games so each game will be a battle and will be very competitive.”

The team unfortunately fell short when they opened up against Daniel Hand, they also played Hamden on September 14 and ended the game in a tie 2-2.

“I’m expecting a big improvement from last year, I’ve been working with all the younger guys since last season ended,” Fitzgerald said. “We’ve developed a lot as a group both physically and tactically and I’m excited to see what we can produce this year as a team.”

The team’s expectations are always to make it to the SCC Tournament and the State Tournament and go as far as possible.

“I plan on making practice as difficult and challenging as possible so that when we play in-game, it comes easy,” Wywoda said. “Practice needs to be at 100 percent at all times so that the speed of the game doesn’t surprise us.”

The team has a lot of talented players, and a lot of leaders, that are not just the captains. 

“The transition to the high school game is tough but they are acclimating very well and I see them getting better each and every day,” Gruber said. “They are a big part of the future and I am excited to see growth from them in the next four years.”

The team lost eight seniors last year, leaving spots for new players or freshmen to fill. This year the team got 7 freshmen. 

“I plan to lead by example and work as hard as possible, so that our team will be able to make the postseason tournaments,” junior Alex Rodriguez said. 

A few players from the team commented on the fact that they always look forward to Law Vs Foran rivalry games. 

“I am also looking forward to seeing these student athletes gel both on the field and off the field and make long lasting friendships that they will have throughout their life,” Gruber said. “We are a tight knit group and everyone looks out for each other which is nice to see.”

Last year the Lawmen ended their season with a record of 3-10-3. Playing top teams in the state made it hard for the Lawmen to have a promising record. 

“We played and competed with high-level teams in the state in order to get in shape to prepare for the season,” Wywoda said. “We got our conditioning up and played more as a team so we could start the regular season strong and make the state tournament.”