photo by: Conner Becker/Journal-World

Free State head boys soccer coach Joe Waldron (left) and senior defender Utah Hester (right) watch from midfield during an open practice on Wednesday, June 12, 2023, at Free State High School.

Even in the July heat, the Free State boys soccer team is hard at work ahead of the St. Louis-based STL Varsity Showcase, for which the team leaves Friday morning.

The showcase will also feature Lawrence High and first-year boys coach Joe Comparato, who also enters this season with high aspirations.

Free State coach Joe Waldron, entering his third year in charge of the program, is leaning on five seniors — Utah Hester, Drew Rosenthal, Carter Stephenson, Cam Stutler, Blake Warner and Matthew Warner — to put the team’s best foot forward, not just this weekend, but throughout the tough regular season ahead.

“Each senior class that comes in has their own set of goals that they want, and they’re usually pretty lofty,” Waldron said. “As a coach, I’m trying to keep everybody grounded and moving forward. We have some impact players in this senior class, and the important thing for me is to try and provide an environment where they can shine and let their talents come through.”

It’s safe to say Waldron raised expectations for the Firebirds last season, leading his team to a 9-9 finish in the Sunflower League and Class 6A state quarterfinal. Free State notched wins in four of its first five matches, going on to win four total games against league foes — Shawnee Mission North, Shawnee Mission South, Gardner Edgerton and Lawrence High.

That’s not a bad finish by any stretch, considering the state title has been claimed by league members Mill Valley and Olathe West.

“You have to fight every single game,” said Hester, one of Free State’s three returning defenders. “Even the lower teams in the table, like we were (last season), it’s not an easy team to play against, at all. Every week, you’re playing against one of the top teams in the state, but you’ve got to turn it on.”

“He’s not kidding,” Waldron said. “It’s brutal.”

And that competition will heat up this fall, as Waldron is tasked with replacing six starters on his varsity roster.

Hester, after climbing his way into last year’s starting 11, learned the league’s competitive nature last season. He had transferred from Baldwin ahead of his junior year. Waldron is Hester’s fourth coach in now a fourth year of high school soccer.

“It was completely brand new,” Hester said. “You’ve got like 60 guys coming, which I like, because any competition is important within a team. That’s competition for a spot where everyone’s going to step up.”

This weekend’s showcase is an opportunity for Waldron to evaluate his progress over the past three weeks of training camp.

“Everything we do is based on performance, rather than outcome,” Waldron said. “It’s incrementally trying to turn up the heat and raise the expectations.”

Tryouts are slated for early August, Waldron said.