Wichita North soccer chasing history behind the school’s expectations

Ninety-three players are at his disposal.

Curt Wullschleger, Wichita North boys soccer coach, has four teams in his program and an entire high school’s expectations weighing them down. He and his players have a long road ahead of them, but the Redskins are considered one of — if not the — favorites to win the City League title.

But North hasn’t done that.

“It can’t be ours to lose because it’s never been ours,” Wullschleger said. “And until we win it for the first time ever, we will be building towards that, and that will be our No. 1 goal.”

North High is a soccer school. Almost every other sports team at North hasn’t achieved to the level of the Redskins’ soccer teams, but that City League title has remained elusive. Even in 1989, when North won the Class 6A state championship, the Redskins came up short in the league.

Wullschleger, a 1997 North graduate, said that is personal for him.

“It’s an excellent time to be a Redskin,” he said. “I hear it in all my soccer circles that, ‘Oh, North is gonna be good.’ And I have to bring the boys back down to earth every day because we haven’t done anything. We’ve won zero games just like everyone else.

“Don’t believe the hype. Go out there and prove it.”

North returns a wealth of talent and has even gotten a couple of transfers that Wullschleger said will contribute right away.

The Redskins start with Alfonso Ceballos — a quiet but fierce senior midfielder who serves as the creative engine in the middle of the pitch. He is one of two returning All-Metro selections.

Jesus Vitela, a forward for the past three seasons, will anchor the Redskins’ defensive midfield to pair with Nicholas Dominick and Hunter Salinas at the center back spots. Vitela is one of the Redskins’ most experienced players and one of their biggest leaders.

Finally, Myles Miller will fill out the North midfield and provide stability in the middle of the pitch, so forwards like Francisco Soto Jr., Koby Marth and Jalen Tackett can use their speed and vision to get forward.

Vitela said the Redskins are ready for the challenge of the 2018 City League because they “want it more,” but there are plenty of teams in Wichita that will be chasing the title, too.

Bishop Carroll is coming off a Class 5A state championship game appearance. The Golden Eagles won the City League last year, handing North its only league loss with a 2-1 result.

Kapaun Mt. Carmel will be strong as well. The Crusaders joined Carroll in the 5A semifinals and took third with a 2-0 win over St. Thomas Aquinas.

Wichita East, Northwest, Heights and South will also give North a good push, Wullschleger said. But maybe the Redskins’ greatest assets for the 11 varsity starters are the other 82 players in the North camp. The constant competition is the thing Wullschleger said he likes most about his group.

“With surprises we get at tryouts, kids know they can’t take a day off because they know somebody is going to try to take their spot,” he said. “This is by far the best freshman class we’ve ever had. There’s about 30 of them, and just about all of them can really play, and some of those younger guys have taken some of the spots of the older guys.”

Soccer is the sport of the North community. Wullschleger said even the kids who don’t come out for the soccer tryout are still kicking a ball around outside the school when they can.

They aren’t throwing footballs.

“Even just walking down the halls, you’ll have teachers say, ‘How are you guys looking? How are you guys going to do this year?’ ” Vitela said. “It’s motivation.”

With that community and the history North is chasing in 2018 also comes pressure. Wullschleger said it can get overwhelming if those in the program think about it too much.

But when competitors from Carroll and Kapaun are saying North is the team to beat this season, the pressure is difficult to avoid. Entering his sixth season at North, Wullschleger said a City League title has been the goal since day 1.

As he sees it, he is coming into the “sixth year of a project.”

“I can’t screw it up,” Wullschleger said. “I know they boys handle it well because they just keep their nose to the grindstone. We tend to focus on controlling what we can control, but yeah, we think about it a lot. It means a lot, and a league title would be very validating.”

Miller said the players don’t see the expectations as pressure. When North opens its season against JC Harmon on Tuesday at Blue Valley West, the Redskins will be excited and maybe nervous ... but they won’t be worried about beating Carroll or Kapaun or East.

There is plenty of more immediate work to do.

“It’s a good pressure,” Miller said. “It’s a pressure to make you want to work harder and to win and to beat the rest of the teams out there.”

This story was originally published August 22, 2018 at 12:16 PM.