While the high school soccer season won’t begin for more than a month, athletes were busy honing their skills during the annual Dacotah Bank Cup tournament over the weekend by the Hub City Soccer Club at the Moccasin Creek Soccer Complex.

One those was Aberdeen Central goalie Camden Fauth.

“I’d say fall soccer is a lot more intense. This is just to get prepared for our high school season,” Fauth said. “Obviously, not everyone is here in the summer. This will definitely help us come fall season.”

Fauth said one of the most important aspects of goal tending is communication. He instructs defenders on what to look out for during the course of a game.

“Obviously, being goalie helps seeing the field,” Fauth said. “Talking is really important being a goalie, especially to your defense, because they need to know if someone is coming on and that stuff.”

Fauth, who is heading into his junior season, has started in goal for the past two seasons for the Golden Eagles. He knows he will be counted on for leadership this fall.

“I’m looking forward to it. I have to start being more of a leader now,” Fauth said. “We’ve lost a lot of seniors these past two years, so obviously I need to step up.”

Being a goalie can feature a wide range of emotions. When a ball gets past him, Fauth said a key is having a short memory.

“Once you give it up, you have to have a 10-second memory. You just have to let it go,” Fauth said. “If that sticks with you, it’s just going to keep making everything worse, so you just have to let it go and move on to the next play right away.”

Of course, there is nothing quite like making a diving save to prevent someone from scoring.

“It feels amazing. It gets me going,” Fauth said. “It gets me energized, especially when you make that save and clear it out, just yelling ‘Get up!, Get up!’ “

PLAYING FOR HER TEAM

Aberdeen’s Kennedi Artz is a team player.

The 9-year-old scored a goal on Saturday, but felt more happy because it helped her teammates.

“If it’s like a tournament, I kind of feel happy for my team,” Artz said, “because of the passing.”

Artz has already played at tournaments in Fargo, N.D., and Sioux Falls this season.

She pointed out the pros and cons of those events.

“It can be kind of stressful,” Artz said, “but still it’s pretty fun to be able to travel.”

While Artz enjoys playing soccer, she pointed out another aspect when asked about her favorite part of the sport: “I can meet new people.”

COMING PREPARED

Emily Wesley definitely had her hands full during the tournament.

On Saturday, the Pierre woman could be seen pulling a wagon full of supplies in one hand and holding on to a pair of drink containers in the other.

The wagon contained four chairs, four sandwiches, a water bottle and a soccer ball.

What made the situation more challenging is that the game Wesley was looking for was located a pair of soccer fields away, meaning she had to pull the wagon through the grass the entire way.

“We just decided rather than loading everything back up, we’d just walk on down,” Wesley said. “I’m used to it.”

Wesley was the coach of a U10 boys’ team in the tournament.

She said the key is teaching the kids how to play the right way.

“We’re trying to build the kids to understand using the whole field, not being an individual player, but starting to look for your teammates,” Wesley said. “I know a lot of times at U10, they focus a lot more on individual skill, but we’re trying to build a team and character while we play the game.”

She said there are several things that she likes about the sport of soccer.

“I like that you have to be physically fit, you have to be mentally fit,” Wesley said. “It’s a team sport, it’s not all individual.”

GIVING BACK TO THE GAME

One of those officials working the games this past weekend was former Northern State player Justine Charles.

“I played soccer growing up. I got involved with Hub City Soccer when I moved here,” Charles said. “They were looking for refs at one point, so I stepped up.”

The Minnesota native said that soccer was something her whole family was into, but she never envisioned becoming a referee.

She said there is a big difference in how to view the game depending which side of the boundary line you are standing.

“It’s a lot different,” Charles said. “Out there it’s easier to argue with the ref, but when you’re looking at it from this side, it’s a little more clear.”

Charles said it has more to do with perspective than it does with who is controlling the game.

“It’s not about the power,” she said. “It’s just easier to see the whole game from here, whereas when you’re playing, you’re in the moment. You’re looking at the ball, you’re looking at where your teammates are, so it’s a different perspective. It’s not about power, it’s just a different perspective.”

To see complete tournament results, click on the following link:

https://events.htgsports.net/?eventid=10211#/scheduleresults