Another successful season for Bodiker’s soccer crew
Senior midfielder Corban Miller’s play was central to Hiland controlling the field in many of their games.
The Hiland Hawks boys soccer team’s disappointing 7-0 loss to top-ranked Worthington Christian in the Division III, Region 11 semifinal game on Wednesday, Nov. 1 left a sour taste in the mouths of Scott Bodiker’s crew.
The two teams played to a scoreless standstill for the first 18 minutes before the Warriors punched one home, which seemed to open the floodgates for WC.
The Warriors scored twice more in the 23rd and 26th minute to take a 3-0- halftime lead and made sure the Hawks didn’t entertain any thoughts of a second-half comeback by quickly scoring in the 41st and 43rd minute to effectively close the game out.
However disappointing the loss was, it doesn’t take away the success of the season, which saw the Hawks claim yet another district crown, something that has become nearly an annual event for the Hawks’ program.
“It never gets old,” Bodiker said of winning district titles. “The reality is if you want to go far into the tournament, you have to win the district first, and you can’t beat these Columbus teams until you give yourself the opportunity to play them. The goal every year is to put ourselves in that type of position.”
Many of the top programs in the state have players who play the game year round, playing club soccer and focusing on just that game. As a small school, Bodiker understands his kids are going to play other sports, participate in other school activities, and juggle school work and church life into their already busy schedules.
As a three-sport star in high school and college, Bodiker understands that plight and said the success the program has experienced stems from several things.
“Would it be nice if we had kids playing soccer year round?” Bodiker said. “Sure, from a purely soccer standpoint. But the reality is you’re giving some other things up when you do that.”
Bodiker said when his players do play outside of the season, they tend to do so as a team and thus develop great team chemistry and a drive to succeed, not as individuals, but as a whole.
“We play together, we spend a lot of time together, and it fosters a commitment to the program and to each other,” Bodiker said. “I believe having kids do other things makes them more well-rounded, which again in the bigger picture serves these kids well.”
Bodiker said this season saw the team get contributions across the board, noting this team’s skill level and knowledge of the game is very high.
He also said kids coming onto the team understand the overriding goal of each season, which is to win a district title and battle their way to a state berth. Because the Hawks have run up against some of the state’s top programs in regionals, that hasn’t happened yet, but Bodiker’s teams have gotten right on the cusp, and being the first team to break through would be a dream scenario.
“I think the minimum expectation is to win districts,” Bodiker said. “That has put us in position to play these talented Columbus area schools. We obviously haven’t been very successful in doing that, but we are almost always competitive, and when you’re close, it is both frustrating and motivating knowing it isn’t that far away.”
This season the Hawks earned the top seed in the Div. III East 1 District and proceeded to put up a trio of fantastic efforts, posting shutouts against Monroe Central, Zanesville Rosecrans and Steubenville Catholic Central to capture the district title, winning the three games by a combined total of 20-0 in finishing up the year with a sparkling 14-3-4 mark.
Bodiker praised his senior group for much of that success, saying it is because of dedication and effort to put in the practice time that this program continues to find success every year.
“It’s a hardworking group of kids, and there is plenty of talent to go with it,” Bodiker said. “Overall, it’s one of the nicest groups of kids a coach could ask for, and while that is a nice thing, it also can work against us a little bit because maybe we’re too nice at times, but I wouldn’t change anything about them. They’ve been extremely committed to this program the whole way through.”
With another season in the books, the Hawks achieved many of their goals, posted a terrific record and continued the program’s success.
The only thing that didn’t come their way again was the elusive state berth. Perhaps one of these next years will be the year the program finally breaks down that door.