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Special contribution to WSN by UW-Stevens Point communications student Charlie Klumb

The Oregon Panther boys soccer team will face a familiar opponent Friday in the Division 2 State Semifinal in Cedarburg, the same team they defeated to get a State Championship last year. 

Deep runs in the playoffs are becoming something of a norm for the Panthers and Head Coach Kevin May. They have reached at least the State Quarterfinal each of the last four years, and are looking to clinch a second straight State Championship. 

This level of success can be attributed to not only the large amount of talent on the team, but the community as a whole making soccer a priority.

“We have been fortunate to have a community that has put a lot of time and effort into making soccer a big, exciting thing in Oregon.  Numerous volunteer hours and little extras to provide opportunities for our players has been a big factor,“ Head Coach Kevin May said. 

This effort shown b the community has made his job a little bit easier as well. 

“As coaches it is just awesome to have the drive already instilled in the players, because then as coaches all we have to do is make sure they have the opportunities presented to them, and the kids take advantage of what we have to offer,” May said. 

Defense has been something that Coach May has always hung his hat on during his time at Oregon, and that is no different this year with the Panthers conceding just six goals all year. 

“We take pride in our defensive strong hold and this isn't something new.  It was the case when I was first hired and my defenders, including my goalkeepers, have accepted the responsibility of playing together, staying organized, covering for each other, communicating, and getting shut outs,” May said. 

The backbone to this stout defense is goalkeeper Dan Dombrowski, who takes great pride in being just that. 

“He knows he is accountable for goals if they go in, so he is pretty intense in training sessions to make sure he is doing everything he can to make the saves when he needs to,” May said. 

Coach May and his squad have gone through a bit of adversity as well despite their unbelievable 17-1-2 record, with injuries to two key players in Mitch Morhoff and Nick Steidemann. Their return late this year and into the playoffs have given the Panthers a late season boost to kick it up again.
When players go down though, Coach May has a next man up mentality, and the injuries may have been a blessing in disguise for the team in the long run.

“Mitch and Nick add another level of versatility and production to our team.  We definitely missed having them while they were healing up, but there were a handful of guys that stepped up and filled some big shoes.” May said,  “I give our guys credit for bringing up their level of play to make sure our performances didn't skip a beat when we lost some of our starters, it was a very good feeling to have knowing that we have some depth in our roster if needed, and also gave some guys some good experience to grow and learn for future seasons.”

This amount of skill across the board makes the Oregon attack near impossible to stop.

“With all our depth it just makes us really difficult to shut us down, teams try to pick just one or two players to shut down when it really just allows us to exploit them with the other threats we have,” May said.

The rematch Friday at Uihlein Soccer Park for a spot in the Division 2 State Championship against Cedarburg is one that the Panthers are excited and anxious to play. 

“Friday will be a tough game, Cedarburg is a very skilled team with the same drive to get back to the title game, and it will definitely be one of the best games we have had all season.” May said, “But at the same time I am confident we can play with them and we match up well with them, the key is just going to be executing our game plan."