Octorara New Soccer Coach Looks Back, Forward

West Chester's Daily Local News surveys Chester County's high school soccer scene and takes note of the 5 new coaches including Derek Smith, Octorara's new field general.

Coach Derek Smith

Money quote from Smith:

The new man in charge at Octorara was a player on the school's most successful team.

"I was part of their state championship team back in 1999. I was a junior that year," said Smith. "I'm thrilled to be back coaching at Octorara.

"Things were a lot different when I played -- they were still a member of the Southern Chester County League. It's definitely more of a challenge for us now being in the Ches-Mont as a AA school, where we are going out and playing the bigger schools each and every day."

Another article in the same paper profiled this year's boys soccer team.

OCTORARA

Head Coach: Derek Smith (1st year)

Last Season: 9-7-3 overall, 5-6-2 league

Key Players: John Muchow (Jr., defense); Jack Wishenski (Sr., defense); Daulton Rutter (Sr., midfielder); Ben Makansi (Sr., midfielder); Ian Byerly (Jr., forward).

Outlook: The Braves return 14 seniors from a squad that made it all the way to the District 1 Class AA semifinals last season. Leadership will be a big strength of the team for first-year coach Smith, who hopes to see his group contend for the American Division title.

Both articles can be found here and here.