As Park played its opponent Chanhassen, the team worked hard to win, but were not able to score against them. The team was disappointed with the result, but it gives them a chance to learn and prepare better when they play Chanhassen again later in the season, head coach Chato Alvarez said.

Reflecting on the loss against Chanhassen, junior Mason Boesche realized the team’s opponents were technically skilled. 

“We all knew that it was going to be a hard game,” Boesche said. “We were ready to give it our all, but we were still kind of surprised by their physicality.”

According to Alvarez, to prepare for the game he discussed with the team how Chanhassen attacks and defends to prepare them.

“Our idea was being able to counter attack, from last year the way they played and pushed up quite a bit,” Alvarez said. “We talked to the players to try to counter attack so that we can get them off balance.”

Sophomore captain Tommy Kniser, said the team needs to stay focused prior to the game so it can score right away. 

“We have to come out stronger and be more prepared mentally, before the game starts,” Kniser said. “So, we can start off stronger and put the game away in the first half.” 

Boesche said the team strayed away from its pace of the game and started to play the way Chanhassen was playing.

“We lost track of how we usually play and we started to play the way that they were, which was a bit aggressive and kind of sloppy,” Boesche said. “But, everybody on the team really worked as hard as they could.”

Alvarez believed the boys’ have played better games, and there were some things he wanted to work on at practice. He clarified that the forwards weren’t watching offsides and the team relied on individual play.

“It was not our best performance and there were quite a few things that I didn’t like,” Alvarez said. “For instance, the forwards were caught offsides so many times, which was frustrating. As a team, we didn’t play well and we relied on a lot of individuals.” 

Kniser said the team started to rush its plays, and he was frustrated with the outcome of the game. 

“We played alright at moments, but we started to panic,” Kniser said. “I was a bit disappointed with the result and how we finished the game.”

The next boys’ game is at 7 p.m. Sept. 24 at Benilde St. Margaret’s school against Benilde St. Margaret.