Oswego High School’s very own boys varsity soccer team had a remarkable season this year, as they achieved new heights in tournament play and various different victories. Two of the players on the team, seniors Johnny Kreamer and Danny Gayton in particular, had a positive outcome on their season that the whole team is proud of. This being their final year in the sport as high schoolers, the season granted them time to reflect on the year, their team and what they will miss about playing on the highschool level.
“We had a really good season,” Kreamer said. “The bar was to win conference, but we went past that and won a regional final.”
The team also managed to win the Pepsico tournament, a national tournament held right here in Illinois this year, early in the season.
“Winning that final was definitely a big accomplishment for us, something I’ll remember for a long time,” Gayton boasted.
Varsity soccer has always been decent at OHS, but it has struggled to take the next step. The team hadn’t won a regional since 2008. This year, they took that step, and the senior class went out with a bang.
Our Panthers’ strengths definitely seemed to lie in teamwork. Kreamer stated that their ability to work together was their greatest asset. Gayton commented specifically on how strong the back line was at getting the ball around, and it seemed obvious that they both considered working together to be the biggest factor to their success. Sadly, with this being there last year, they will all move on to different teams with different people.
“I am gonna miss soccer here,” Kreamer said. “Mostly because of my teammates and that bond I have with them.”
Gayton agreed on that note. With the first team regional final win in 10 years, a Pepsico tournament win and a conference championship, there has been no more successful season in a decade.
“I’ve just been here for so long, you know, it’s hard to kinda move on,” Gayton added.
A group of talented and passionate boys will be checking out of OHS soccer this year, and they truly were a special group.
