Wengerd eager to see WH boys soccer program grow through work
West Holmes boys soccer head coach Josh Wengerd greets a group of runners at the turn on the Holmes County Trail during one of their morning workouts. The team has been working diligently to help turn around the fortunes of the program.
When Josh Wengerd accepted the West Holmes Knights boys soccer head coaching position two years ago, he fully understood success would not be immediate and winning would take time.
The Knights didn’t win a game in his first year back with the boys program and rallied to capture three victories last season, but it isn’t the records that Wengerd is focused on, but rather the growth in the program, which is why they’ve focused their attention to a summer filled with workouts that have focused on building team and program chemistry and soccer skills.
“What we’ve focused on this summer is trying to offer more opportunities for our kids to work on their skills and get better,” Wengerd said. “I’ve offered more than I ever have, even when I was coaching the girls.”
The schedule includes open field on Sunday evenings where he’s invited alumni to come and add to the experience and lifting at Kinetics Monday and Wednesday mornings, followed by running on the Holmes County Trail.
With personal trainer Gus Baker working with the players at Kinetics, they’ve invested in wight training and core strength and preventive exercises. The running sessions are cardio, helping build a strong oxygen base.
Tuesday and Thursday morning have seen the team uniting at the high school field for traditional practices and soccer training exercises. On Tuesday evenings the team travels to Wooster to compete in a summer league, and Wengerd has included both the high school and middle school programs.
“We’ve tried to blend it all together into teaching moments that will help the kids figure things out,” Wengerd said.
He has been pleased with the turnout and the effort the players have put forth, noting both the competition and the team-building process have been paying dividends.
“We’ve consistently had about 20 guys coming to all of the events, and the participation has been great, especially among the middle-schoolers,” Wengerd said. “It shows a real commitment, and we hope this shows them the norm moving forward as the younger kids start buying in. It’s been very positive.”
Wengerd knew time and commitment would be key to helping the program recover.
The past couple of years have been a major struggle, especially in the Ohio Cardinal Conference, a league well known for its strong soccer talent across the board.
The Knights have taken their lumps, but through it all Wengerd has praised his upperclassmen for remaining strong and encouraging the younger players, knowing full well the seasons would be difficult in terms of wins and losses.
“We know we will probably take our beatings again in the OCC, but we’re getting more competitive,” Wengerd said. “Our numbers are growing. We’re learning a lot, and if these younger kids stay with it, we are only going to get better. We’re still a work in progress, but we can see the light at the end of the tunnel. I feel like we’re right on schedule of where we wanted to be when we stepped in two years ago.”
With the help of middle school coach Grant Fox, who has been encouraging to the kids while running the middle school program, and his assistants Steve and Jill Obrst, Wengerd said the support system is in place to grow.
Wengerd said one day this group will look back and can be proud of the idea they helped turn the program around.
“We’ve been on the short end of wins and losses, and that’s not fun, but these kids have stuck it out and have been working, and it’s rewarding to see them improving and coming together,” Wengerd said. “We’re seeing kids start to blossom because of their hard work. They understand what it’s going to take.”
Perhaps the best sign of encouragement came from a former Knights head coach, Dave Zimmerly, who is now at Smithville. The Knights played Smithville in a scrimmage, and following the performance, Zimmerly texted an encouraging message to Wengerd.
“He texted and said he thinks we’re doing a great job of getting the kids involved and excited about the program,” Wengerd said. “He kind of validated the time and effort we’re putting in, both as a coaching staff and as players.”
For a program hungry to improve and gain respect, those words are the type of thing that can only help both players and staff to continue to work hard and return the program to winning ways.