Reloaded Wildcats ready to open 2018 season Wednesday

Mobile at Pearl River Community College, Saturday, Aug. 11, 2018. (BRETT RUSS/PRCC ATHLETICS)
Mobile at Pearl River Community College, Saturday, Aug. 11, 2018. (BRETT RUSS/PRCC ATHLETICS)

POPLARVILLE— More than half of the roster rotates annually but expectations never change for Pearl River Community College soccer. 

A former NJCAA All-America selection himself, head coach Drew Gallant enters his third year at the helm of the Wildcats program with his sights set distinctly on the big picture.

"The players know about the expectations when they get here because we talk about it a lot during recruiting," he said. "The expectation is to win every year. Everybody has pressure to win, but when you have done as well as we have in the past, there are definitely higher expectations on you."

The six MACJC State Championships have actually made PRCC a draw for some of the region's finest soccer players.

"Kids like to win, so they're going to come here, and the recognition they get with winning helps them move on to other places," Gallant said.

With the end in mind, Gallant scheduled a difficult three-game preseason slate against William Carey, Mobile and Millsaps.

"We fixed a lot of things between the Mobile game and the Millsaps game to finally get some scoring going. We looked much better against a good Millsaps team," Gallant said. "I think things are starting to come around but we're not quite there yet. It has to get better game by game." 

ATTACK

The Wildcats enter Wednesday's 4 p.m. season opener against Itawamba Community College with more depth at center forward than previously anticipated, led by Daminik White (Kingston, Jamaica).

"Dom at center forward is a handful for a lot of teams because of how big, physical and athletic as he is," Gallant said. 

Former Bay St. Louis standout Bo Bowman will likely start out on the wing but can truly impact the game in a number of positions.

"He can play just about anywhere in the front," Gallant said. "He's extremely athletic and creates a lot of goal scoring opportunities."

On the opposite wing will likely be sophomore speedster Jevaun Ennis (Maypen, Jamaica). One of the team's top attackers a year ago, Gallant expects even more in Year 2 from the Jamaican.

"He knows the pressure is on him because he didn't quite perform up to his own expectations," Gallant said. "You have seen that in camp as he continues to work harder and harder."

Bowman's former prep teammate Jonovan Cucurullo (Bay St. Louis) and Kealan Baggett (Ocean Springs) are two more forwards who will factor into the attack. 

Isidro Loya (Picayune) could also provide an extra scoring touch up top for the Wildcats, with Matthan Bourgeois (Picayune; Hancock) adding more athleticism, particularly with PRCC presses an opponent. 

MIDFIELD

Cooper Grafe (Kiln; Hancock) and Mike Jimenez (Ocean Springs) should play big roles in the attacking midfield for PRCC this year despite being just freshmen.

"They're both so creative and work so hard through the midfield creating opportunities for other players and for themselves," Gallant said. "They're a huge part of the reason we're playing the way we are."

Ethan Hodby (Leicester, England) can be seen throughout the Internet for what he did as an exciting attacking player Leicester City's academy program, but since coming to South Mississippi, it's his defensive chops that have landed him in the conversation as a midfielder.

"At the beginning of the preseason we struggled to find his best position," Gallant said. "Ethan really came in there, cleaned things up in the midfield and when he did that things settled down."

Sophomore Eren Welford (Lucedale; George County), Chris Rico (Bay St. Louis), Kyle Van Marcke (Picayune; Pearl River Central) and Shawn Trahan (Carriere; Pearl River Central) will also be counted on in the attacking midfield. 

DEFENSE

The Wildcats' defensive line may the most up in the air heading into Wednesday's opener — but that's a good thing. Because of a number of competitions, for the first time in Gallant's coaching career he's open to the possibility of rotating defenders.

"It's a fun problem to have," he said.

Entering camp it seemed Joe Elliott (Leicester, England) and Mississippi College transfer Andrew Elkins (Bay St. Louis; St. Stanislaus) were the hands down starters, but the emergence of freshman Andrew Holland (Pascagoula, Resurrection Catholic) has Gallant reconsidering his previous plans.

"You can flip a coin on who the best two center backs are," he said. "It's a really good problem to have."

Freshmen Brandon Pasquini (Ocean Springs) and Dylan Picchi (Long Beach) are battling for the left back spot, with Picchi also seeing some time in the midfield. August Harp (Jackson; Murrah) really stood out during the preseason and has taken hold of the right back spot.

"August puts in the work and does a really good job defending," Gallant said. "His work ethic is unlike any others and he's worked himself into that spot."

GOALKEEPERS

The Wildcats return one of the league's top keepers in sophomore Kobe Lie (Hattiesburg; North Forrest) but due to being sidelined during the preseason there could be a bit of a battle brewing in Poplarville for the right to strap on the keeper's gloves.

Redshirt sophomore Jackson Hall (Pass Christian) has also been sidelined and as a result freshman Cody Butler (Picayune) has done a more than serviceable job in net after being thrust into action against three top quality opponents.

"He has come a long way since the first preseason game," Gallant said. "He's really going to push the other two guys when they're back to 100 percent."

Lie is coming off of a season in which he was selected multiple times as both NJCAA and MACJC Keeper of the Week. When he's back up to form, Gallant said, he'll get his chance to retake the goal.

"If Kobe puts in the work, he can be as good as anyone," he said.

All home matches will be live streamed this year at PRCCAthletics.com.

For the latest on Pearl River Community College athletics, follow us on Twitter (@PRCCAthletics) and Facebook (PRCCAthletics).