LADUE – CBC coach Terry Michler sat in a motorized wheelchair wearing a shirt that read, ‘Courage. Be strong. Be brave. Be fearless.’
The all-time winningest coach in high school soccer history, Michler missed the entirety of the 2023 season due to health concerns that ultimately required the amputation of his left leg.
On Thursday, he sat with his trusted notebook in hand, coaching his first game from the sidelines in 649 days.
“I missed it obviously, but once the game started, it was just like old times,” Michler said.
It was only fitting that another ‘first’ decided the outcome.
Ladue sophomore Charlie Gunderson scored his first varsity goal with less than 11 minutes remaining and junior Seaton Thompson made the game-clinching save in the final seconds to power the Rams to a 2-1 victory over CBC in front of a huge crowd Thursday on Becky Sauerbrunn Field at Ladue-West Campus.
In a game that featured several near misses by Ladue on corner kick opportunities, it was a seemingly harmless shot from distance by Gunderson that ultimately determined the outcome.
The Ladue sophomore received a pass, cut toward the top of the box and blasted a right-footed laser that glanced off a defender and sailed into the upper portion of the net with 10 minutes 30 seconds remaining.
“It was a real nice dish from the winger and I saw the opportunity. It deflected off (the defender) and bang, top right. It was a wonder,” Gunderson said.
Over the final 10 minutes, Ladue dropped its outside wingers back defensively and junior Braeden Wallace and sophomore Jack Scheffel sent away CBC passes through the middle. The Rams survived two CBC corner kicks, and with five seconds remaining, Thompson made a tough save on a point-blank attempt by senior Logan Hartsell to preserve the win.
“I made sure to cover my near post so they couldn’t squeak it in, and then I smothered it up,” said Thompson, who made nine saves.
A huge, enthusiastic crowd witnessed high-level soccer from two of the strongest teams in the state of Missouri.
“That’s high school soccer right there – 300 to 400 people on the sidelines – great student sections on both sides,” Ladue coach David Aronberg said. “That was a lively first game. I thought both fan groups really brought it. It was fun.”
Ladue fed off the energy of the crowd in the first half, earning three corner kicks and a 30-yard free kick in the opening 10 minutes.
“I thought we did a great job the first 10 minutes being the aggressors,” Aronberg said. “Sometimes when you play CBC, there’s the CBC mystique and the kids play scared, but the kids came out with confidence.”
That Ladue confidence helped to produce the first goal when a free kick service was volleyed off the post by Wallace before sophomore Keegan Cody directed it into the net with his shoulder in the 18th minute.
The Rams earned seven corner kick opportunities in the first 28 minutes, but despite a cornucopia of close calls, none resulted in a goal.
“With that many corner kicks in the first half, we definitely should have scored,” Wallace said. “I headed one over the post and there were others that were close. It’s something we have to work on.”
CBC earned its first corner kick with less than two minutes remaining in the half and made it count. A rocket by senior Dylan Trost chimed the underside of the crossbar and ricocheted to sophomore Connor Kamps, who buried the rebound to tie the score 1-1.
The offensive surge by the Cadets, which began in the final 10 minutes of the first half, was made possible by an infusion of energy by several CBC reserves.
“We made some subs, and the guys who came in were calm and did a nice job,” Michler said. “Then, the guys who were sitting got to watch, came back fresh, and they made a difference in the second half.”
CBC earned three corner kicks early in the second half, and only a brilliant left leg save by Thompson kept CBC junior Stevie Jones from putting the Cadets ahead.
“Just a reaction save,” Thompson said. “You don’t really think about those, you just do it. You have to rely on your reflexes there.”
And Michler relied on his 53 years of coaching and his trusty notebook to keep the Cadets surging. He summoned defenders Kaden Ellis, Logan Hartsell and TJ Crowder to stop the Rams’ oncoming rushes while the other seven Cadets went on the attack.
“Games are interesting because there’s a situation and you have to figure out a way to solve it. We made some adjustments at halftime, and we were a different team. The kids figured things out and we had a good, competitive second half,” Michler said.
But Gunderson ultimately figured out a way to score his first career goal, and Ladue earned a signature victory in the season opener.
“He didn’t do anything fancy. Cut in, got a shot off, deflection, goal. When you put it on frame, good things happen,” Aronberg said.
And good things are also on the horizon for CBC, with their courageous leader back on the sideline and an eager group of players ready to soak in his wisdom.
“We’ve got a new team, very inexperienced, but we just have to be brave and take some risks,” Michler said.
Junior Nico Garrone added, “It’s great having him back.”
Photos at http://benvessa.smugmug.com