By: Drew Mandeville 

     Eisenhower Middle High School started off the new school year with exciting fall sports and challenges to match. For Eisenhower’s football team’s goals for the season, they hope to capitalize on their culture and win a District 10 championship. Meanwhile, Eisenhower boys’ soccer began their season with a new assistant coach and a new formation to make noise in season, as the boys cross country team looks towards developing the younger talent, having only three upper classmen, and getting to the point of success.

     Eisenhower soccer started the season strong, looking to be contenders for the playoffs. Senior, Austin Hannold, discussed Eisenhower’s goal, stating that the team’s main goal is making playoffs. An important issue for the season was learning new positions due to the arrival of Assistant Coach, Michael Taylor. Hannold spoke on Coach Taylor’s arrival saying, “It’s easy getting used to the new coach and the formation took some getting used to, but it wasn’t bad.” Eisenhower returned 12 players this season, while losing seven seniors, including key players Jake Venman, James Larson, and Gavin Labowski. Following their departure, the team filled new roles, such as Casey Seymour transitioning from a striker role to becoming a goalie. The other concern for the season was younger players coming into roles where the older player’s mentorship is key. Hannold shared advice to younger players when saying, “Just give it your all and you’ll be fine.” Hannold also discussed the team’s strongest skills and highlighted the team’s speed and communication. 

     The Eisenhower football team begins with a strong record, and looks to hold the record to a District 10 championship. Benji Bauer shared with W-IKE news that the team’s goal is to win the District 10 Championship and hold an undefeated record. Shawn Pascuzzi also shared about the team’s expectations and said that they look towards a District 10 Championship, while adding that they also look towards improving game by game to get to the intended goal. Pascuzzi added that his advice for younger and aspiring players is that they should never stop practicing, and should always work hard. Bauer and Pascuzzi had similar things to say about the team’s strengths – their run game being the strongest for this season. Pascuzzi went into detail, describing Bauer and Tucker Lindell’s hustle and grit in the back field. Bauer and Pascuzzi again agreed when discussing Eisenhower’s stifling offensive line and their importance to their team’s success. Pascuzzi acknowledged one of the biggest challenges for this team is their hustle playing until the whistle, as he says, “We could be an amazing team if we start to play until the last whistle.” 

     The boys cross country team started the season with strong performances, despite their drop in numbers on the boys varsity team. The cross-country team graduated one senior last year and one of their top runners, Alex Hummel. The team looked to win meets, which Joe Mistretta said was one of their top expectations for the season. Mistretta also gave the advice to younger players that drinking water is key. Following a season full of challenges due to a young and inexperienced roster, a large difficulty is recruiting and bringing in new players. Mistretta also shared with The Squire that the team is putting effort in recruiting and hopefully being able to score in upcoming years. 

    As the season continues, all Eisenhower teams look to make the blue and gold proud. Good luck to all Eisenhower Knights Boys Sports this school year!