BY BRETT MARSHALL
Great Bend’s Salvador Garcia and Jonathan Pasos earned first-team All-Western Athletic Conference soccer honors.
The Panthers placed Juan Sanchez and Carlos Batres on the second team All-WAC team. Great Bend (6-10-1, 2-5-1) finished with a 2-1 playoff loss to Andover Central.
The Dodge City Red Demons have dominated the WAC fall sport for nearly all of the past half-decade, winning three consecutive titles and six of the past seven. Liberal captured the 2018 crown.
Red Demon midfielder Irwin Macias was named WAC Boys Soccer Player of the Year.
Macias’ overall statistics might not be the most daunting or impressive, but it is his overall play that led to his selection after helping the Demons to an unblemished 8-0 WAC mark, and eventually all the way to the Class 6A state quarterfinals before a surprising 2-1 loss to Wichita North ended what had been another stellar season, ending with a 17-1-1 record after winning the 6A state title a year ago.
Macias’ notched nine goals and added eight assists, but his contribution to the Demons’ success cannot be measured by those statistics alone.
“I was very surprised when Coach (Saul Hernandez) told me about the award,” Macias said in a telephone interview. “It is a reward for all the hard work last summer that paid off. I have some really good senior teammates that I thought might get it.”
With two consecutive unbeaten WAC seasons tucked away, the Demons have now won 23 straight league matches and in Hernandez’ seven seasons, they have posted an impressive 53-3-0 won-loss record in the league.
“Winning the WAC is always a goal, but it is just one of many for us,” Macias said of the Demons’ program which has produced two state championships, a third and a fourth during his current tenure. “We didn’t achieve our bigger goals in the playoffs, but we still had a very good season.”
Macias, who moved into the varsity lineup midway through his freshman season in 2019, began as a wing player, moving between the left and right sides at mid-field.
“The wing positions that I played I had obvious dropping responsibilities to help the defense,” Macias said. “I still drop some at mid-field, but not that much.”
Now settled in as the team’s mid-field attacker, Macias enjoyed the overall role he plays for the Demons.
“The decision-making requires you to be fast and we do a lot of that in practice,” Macias said. “I feel like I’ve got good use of both feet, but I’m a natural right-footed player.”
He works tirelessly on his scoring and it pays off in goals, assists and putting the ball in the hands of his other front-line attackers.
“I try to really shoot for the bottom corners of the net,” Macias said. “That’s where the goalkeepers have the most difficulty in stopping shots. If I aim for the top corner, it’s a beautiful goal but I really like to shoot straight on. The biggest improvement I need to make next year is shooting from beyond the 18 (yard line).”
With the DCHS program enjoying unparalleled success, Macias said he’s have the time of his life playing the sport he loves.
“It’s an honor to play here,” Macias said. “He’s (Hernandez) a good coach and he really helps us a lot.”
After the disappointing season-ending loss, Macias said it wouldn’t be long before he and his returning teammates begin working on things in the off-season.
“We’re going to have a pretty good team next year,” he said. “We’ve got some really good players returning, so I’m excited.”
Macias drew high praise from his coach.
“Irwin’s vision is something that sets him apart on the field,” Hernandez said. “He can find players making runs towards the goal that can unlock stubborn defenses.”
The Demons’ coach said Macias was a great teammate, both on and off the field.
“Off the field, he is also a great kid who is humble and works hard. He is always smiling and has a good attitude towards everything he does, which makes him a great example for others to follow.”
One of the skill sets Hernandez appreciates most is the area in front of the net.
“He is a player who will dribble at a defense and create chaos in their 18-yard box,” Hernandez said. “He became a marked player, but he would always seem to find a way to get the ball to the right place. He is almost always the one that makes the biggest statement when the ball is at his feet.”
Red Demons Jose Holguin, Daniel Ruiz and Angel Lopez were named first-team All-WAC. Other first teamers were Liberal’s Angel Munoz and Emanuel Ortuno. Hays High’s Diego Muller and Brantlee Staab and Garden City’s Bryant Tamayo.
Hernandez was voted Coach of the Year for the third consecutive season.
Following Dodge City in the WAC final standings was Garden City (6-2), Great Bend (2-5-1), Liberal (2-6) and Hays High (1-6-1).
WAC FIRST TEAM
DODGE CITY—Irwin Macias, 11; Jose Holguin, 12; Daniel Ruiz, 12; Angel Lopez, 12;
GARDEN CITY—Bryant Tamayo, 12;
GREAT BEND—Salvador Garcia, 12; Jonathan Pasos, 12
HAYS—Diego Muller, 11; Brantlee Staab, 10
LIBERAL—Angel Munoz, 12; Emanual Ortuno, 11
WAC SECOND TEAM
DODGE CITY—Bryan Tonche, 12; Aron Martinez, 10
GARDEN CITY—Daniel Zamaripa, 12; Roger Benitez, 12; Erick Tamayo, 12; David Hernandez, 11
LIBERAL—Suain Moncayo, 9; Giovanny Reyes, 10
GREAT BEND—Juan Sanchez, 12; Carlos Batres, 12
HAYS HIGH—Kyzer Fox, 10
Player of Year—Erin Macias, Dodge City
Coach of Year—Saul Hernandez, Dodge City
WESTERN ATHLETIC
Dodge City 7-0 17-1-1
Garden City 6-2 12-5
Great Bend 2-5-1 6-10-1
Liberal 2-6 5-12
Hays High 1-6-1 5-11-1
DODGE CITY (8-0, 17-1-1)—W Wichita Carroll 3-1; W Newton 4-1; W Wichita Heights 6-0; W Wichita North 3-0; W *Liberal 3-0; W *Hays 6-0; W *Garden City 1-0, OT; W *Great Bend 6-0; W Wichita Trinity 2-0; W *Garden City 3-0; W *Hays 7-2; TIE Blue Valley SW 0-0; W *Great Bend 10-0; W SM South 4-0; W Free State 4-0; W *Liberal 5-1; W Wichita West 7-0; W Topeka 6-2; L Wichita North 0-1
GARDEN CITY (6-2, 12-5)—W *Hays 2-0; W Buhler 1-0, OT; L Goddard 4-5; W Rose Hill 3-0; W Hays TMP 10-0; W *Liberal 3-2; L *Dodge City 0-1, OT; W *Hays High 5-0; W *Great Bend 2-1; L *Dodge City 0-3; W Wichita Heights 3-1; W *Liberal 3-0; W *Great Bend 4-1; L Wichita North 0-5; W Wichita East 5-4 OT; W Liberal 3-2 OT; L Free State 1-2
GREAT BEND (2-5-1, 6-10-1)—W *Liberal 2-1; W Emporia 3-2; L Derby 1-3; W Wichita Northwest 2-1; TIE *Hays 1-1; L Maize South 1-4; L Wichita Trinity 1-5; L * Hays 1-2; L *Dodge City 0-6; L *Garden City 1-2; W Hays TMP 8-0; L *Garden City 1-4; L Junction City 1-4; L *Dodge City 0-10; W *Liberal 1-0; W McPherson 3-2, OT; L Andover Central 1-2
LIBERAL (2-6, 5-12)—L—*L Great Bend 1-2; L Wichita East 0-4; W Maize 4-0; L Manhattan 1-6; L *Dodge City 0-3; L *Garden City 2-3; W Lamar, Colo. 5-1; W Hays TMP 12-0; W *Hays 2-0; L *Garden City 0-4; W *Hays 2-1; L Wichita East 0-2; L Wichita North; L Garden City 2-3, OT; L *Great Bend 0-1; L *Dodge City 1-5; L Wichita North 1-7
HAYS HIGH (1-6-1, 5-11-1)—*L Garden City 0-2; L Wichita Northwest 1-2; W Hutchinson 2-1; L Emporia 1-3; TIE *Great Bend 1-1; L *Dodge City 0-6; W *Great Bend 2-1; L *Garden City 0-5; W Junction City 5-2; L *Liberal 0-2; L *Dodge City 2-7; L *Liberal 1-2; L Wichita Trinity 0-4; L Wichita Carroll 0-2; W Wichita Classical 1-0; W Hays-TMP 11-1; L Valley Center 0-1
