As the new school year of 2019-2020 comes into full effect, the NDA soccer team begins their run to state for the golden ball. 

This year, the Tritons will be led by Michael Prudisch, the new boys soccer coach and a science teacher at Notre Dame. 

Prudisch is very excited about the start of the season and believes it can be a great year.

“The start of the season has gone as well as we could’ve asked for. We had a tough first week of games, having our first four games in the span of five days, but we handled it well and managed to come away with a 3-1 record, with our one loss coming to the second-ranked team in the state in division one,” said the new coach. 

“At this point,” he continued, “we have had a lot of success on the field to start the season, but there is still plenty for us to work on as we begin conference play.” 

The boys team has won state three times in Notre Dame’s history with the last year being 2008. 

Senior captain Charlie Wied believes this could be the year when they do it again. 

“I’m very excited about our chances this season. We have a great coach and all of our guys bring something beneficial to the team. No question we’ll have a successful year,” said Wied.

Hard work and dedication are vital components of having a successful team. Winning does not come easy and the golden ball is definitely not handed out for free, which ultimately makes practice indispensable to a team’s morale. 

“Practice is a great place to become a better player and improve as a team, but most importantly it’s where the life-long friendships are made,” said Erik Sladky, also a senior captain.  

“I am excited about the potential this team has. We have a lot of depth, which is a huge benefit when we play multiple games a week. We have a great group of guys in the program who all have the same mindset, and that is winning the state championship,” said Coach Prudisch.

He also cited the “balance we have between having fun and working hard.” 

“As a coach, I want my players to work as hard as they can to get better, but I want them to have fun while they do it. As long as we keep that mindset, we will be more than capable of bringing home another state championship,” he said.