The All-Area Boys Soccer team for 2007 is, from left to right, Bryce Walker, Perry-Lecompton; Kory Roberts, Perry-Lecompton; coach Jason Pendleton, Free State; Greg Glatz, Free State; Alex Clayton, Free State; Alex Silva, Baldwin; Erik Slan, Free State; Andrew Heck, Free State; Zach England, De Soto; Spencer Nash, Mill Valley; and Dustin Schiller, Baldwin.

One of the most humble prep athletes you’ll ever encounter, Baldwin’s Dustin Schiller is a multi-skilled soccer player who would rather pass than score and prefers to talk up his teammates instead of himself.

His character is matched by his talent. On a BHS team that coach Gus Wegner admitted was not very deep, Schiller led the Bulldogs to a 7-7 record and compiled 24 goals and 20 assists in the process before breaking his wrist and missing the final three contests of the season (the Bulldogs went 0-3 without him). Wegner said Schiller was dominant on the pitch this year.

“It’s his speed,” the coach said of his star pupil’s most dangerous attribute. “He just has tremendous speed.”

Combine that speed with ball control, deft passing and the ability to score on anybody from anywhere on the field and you get the ultimate soccer weapon. That play-making ability, Schiller said, developed from years of practice – he first started playing at the age of four.

“From being around the game so long I have good vision and I know the game a lot,” he said. “I just think I’ve become quicker over the years, I can beat defenders and stuff.”

That statement is about the closest Schiller will come to being boastful. Wegner raved about Schiller’s unselfishness and positive attitude.

“He would just as soon pass up a shot that he has and (give) someone else a chance to score,” Wegner said. “He was always positive; so easy to coach.”

Schiller never badmouthed anybody when he was playing and that, along with his stellar play, earned him the respect of his peers and his teammates. But Schiller said it was his teammates, especially Alex Silva, that made him look good.

“Alex is a better finisher than me, so usually I just look for him first because I know if I get it to him he’s going to finish,” he said of the foreign exchange student from Brazil, who netted 20 goals this year. “He was a major asset to our team this year and I’m glad he came to Kansas to help us out.”

When asked about his personal highlights from his senior year, Schiller hesitated, but his teammate didn’t.

“Bicycle kick,” Silva said, prompting a grin from Schiller.

Not that he wanted to talk about it, but Schiller scored on a bicycle kick – one of the most difficult soccer moves to pull off – this year against Tonganoxie from roughly 20 yards out to the delight of his teammates and coaches.

Schiller shrugged it off and said the goal was nothing more than him being in the right place at the right time, but again pointed to his countless hours around the game as a catalyst for essentially scoring a goal while doing a backflip.

“When I was a little kid I used to always throw the ball up in the air and try it,” he said.

No big deal. Not for Schiller anyway.