Despite losing eight players from last year’s team due to graduation, the Wright City Wildcats come into the 2023 season with similar expectations. 

The Wildcats are coming off their second straight 11-win season and fourth straight season with at least 10 wins. Second year head coach Josh Albregts said in a normal situation, teams who lose eight seniors would go into rebuilding mode. However, Albregts believes there will not be any rebuilding. 

“We were gonna make it a rebuilding year, but he kind of wiped that clean,” Wright City defensive midfielder Nate Bowman said. “Now it’s just the same goal as it was last year.”

Albregts said the Wildcats had seven or eight freshmen join the program to help with the readjustment. The freshmen include a mix of players who have played club soccer before and those who have no club soccer experience. 

Albregts recently named Bowman, Drew Elsenrath and Keagan Loeffler team captains. 

Bowman and Loeffler stressed the structure of the offseason, with conditioning twice a week starting in February. They also had camps and open fields throughout the offseason. 

“He organized a lot of things starting in February,” Loeffler said. “The whole year was really structured and it’s going to continue to be going into the season.” 

Albregts and the senior captains all cited the benefits of stability in Albregts’ second season at the helm of the soccer program. Albregts took over last season right before the start of the season. 

Elsenrath said despite Albregts having no experience playing or coaching soccer prior to last season, he trusts Albregts to lead the Wildcats on the soccer pitch. Elsenrath thinks the familiarity of Albregts returning for his second season will help Wright City. 

“I feel like last year I kind of like, I wouldn't say didn't trust him, but like he never played soccer before. I just wasn't as confident,” Elsenrath said. “But then coming into this year, I'm way more confident and I trust him.”

Albregts thinks the consistency for the players to have the same coach is key. He is hoping to establish consistency within the soccer program. 

“Unfortunately in this day and age, you don't get the consistency,” Albregts said. “The coaches I had in the three sports that I played were the same coaches, you know, every year. Now you see…two or three in five years. One of the things I'm trying to do is just get more  of the consistency there.”

One of Albregts’ main priorities this season is on the core values of the soccer program. The core values Albregts is implementing this season include the players leaving the jersey in a better spot than when they got it and “embracing the suck.” 

“We're gonna do the things that nobody else is gonna do,” Albregts said. “We're gonna do the rough stuff. We're gonna do whatever it takes. We're gonna grind out the wins. And at the same time too, we are focusing on the fundamentals in practice a lot.”

Albregts stressed their goal this season is to get to districts and then go as far as they can. 

I'm not trying to do anything fancy. We're just doing what we're doing.” Albregts said. “And if that means that we end up winning a district game or if that means that we end up winning a district championship or go far in the state, you know, that is what it is at that point. That would be beyond my wildest dreams.”

Wright City will open the regular season at 4:30 p.m. Aug. 29 at Winfield High School.