The Mission Bay boys soccer team is having a historic season having gone undefeated over its first 14 games. With a record of 13-0-1, the Bucs have outscored opponents 53-9 during that span as they prepare to take on High Tech on the road on Wednesday evening.
“It’s a very balanced team with good leadership,” said head coach Joe Panian. “They are willing to keep on improving and work for each other.”
Among the noteworthy players so far are seniors Dane Peaslee, who leads the team with 14 goals and 13 assists, Gavin Marzion, Soren Bengston, Chase Enyart, and goalkeeper Nick Herschman. Mission Bay has also received outstanding play from juniors Jackson Villani, Spencer Morton, and Daniel Arujo with the team having five players who have scored at least six goals this season.
“We’ve been trying to possess the ball in the opposing half and also to press them high up the field,” Panian added. “We try to control the tempo of the game all around.”
Panian, a former standout goalkeeper at the University of San Diego, is in his 25th season coaching the boys soccer team. After the game versus High Tech, Mission Bay will have two more matches remaining both at home versus Christian on Feb. 2 and Madison on Feb. 9 to close out the regular season. In the first meeting against Madison, the Bucs came out with a 3-0 victory on Jan. 24, which came a week after defeating Christian in dominating fashion, 9-0.
“Madison is second-place in our league right now,” said Panian. “They were undefeated before we played them last time. I’m making sure that the guys stay focused in trying to complete the regular season without a defeat.”
Mission Bay has shut out half of its opponents. The only team the Bucs did not defeat was Canyon Hills, which ended as a 1-1 draw on Dec. 6.
As for the MBHS girls soccer team, it has five games remaining and sits with a 6-4-1 record while getting ready for an upcoming game on Jan. 30 at San Diego.
