IMA SPORTS

For two straight seasons, Noah Preciado bided his time until it was his turn in the spotlight. Now that he’s stepped to center stage, the senior is taking advantage of his chance with the Maumee boys soccer team.

The Panthers are off to a 2-1 start, including back-to-back wins over Rossford (13-0) and Wapakoneta (3-0) following a season-opening 2-0 loss at Sandusky Perkins.

In the last two games, Preciado has scored six goals and assisted on two others. His production shouldn’t come as a surprise — he was second on the team in scoring the last two seasons with 40 goals and 22 assists for 102 points.

“Noah has always been a dangerous threat, but when you have Blake Wagner and Frankie Folger, you tend to get overshadowed,” Maumee coach Chad Kain said. “But take nothing away from Noah — he is a dynamic player who will shine this year and make a difference game in and game out.”

Preciado hasn’t been alone in filling the back of the net. Maumee has had eight different players score so far.

Jaxson Greenlese has two goals and an assist, Charlie Skeels has two goals and two assists, and Logan Staffan has a goal and two assists. Jaxson Blue has a goal and an assist, while David Poeppelmeier, Cason Brown and Wyatt Sweet have also scored.

“The chemistry is definitely different on this team, and our role players will definitely need to step up, like Charlie Skeels, Jaxson Greenlese and Brock Saneholtz,” Kain said.

Preciado struck first against Wapakoneta, scoring off a goalie deflection in the 34th minute. In the second half, Greenlese scored on a pass from Noor Abdelrazek, and Preciado scored again on a Greenlese assist.

The Panthers return to action at 7 p.m. Thursday at Northview. They’ll host Swanton on Saturday.

Panthers Girls Soccer

It’s been a rough start for the Maumee girls soccer team, which has opened the season 0-4 and is still looking for its first goal.

The Panthers opened with a 1-0 loss at Perkins, followed by losses to Northview (10-0) and at Rossford (3-0). On Saturday, they fell 6-0 to Wapakoneta.

Grace Burnfield scored twice for the Redskins, while Emory Preston and Avery Sheipline each had a goal and an assist.

Maumee will be back in action Thursday at Bryan. The next home game is Wednesday, Sept. 3, against Genoa at Kazmaier Stadium.

Photo courtesy of Pride of the Panthers
Reach IMA at insidemaumeeathletics@gmail.com