Men`s varsity soccer: reclaiming the prestige

The Hawks are looking to make it back to the Division III state finals this year in Columbus. First, they have to get past districts, a place where they`ve fallen for the past two years against Cornerstone Christian and where they will have to face a couple of formidable opponents. The News-Herald recently featured senior Misha Carrel-Thomas` and the soccer team`s trek to the top. Read on for the story. Round-trip ticket to cash in Chris Lillstrung Misha Carrel-Thomas experienced the thrill of playing on high school soccer`s grandest stage right off the bat, starting as a freshman defender on Hawken`s 2003 Division III state finalist team. But three year later, Carrel-Thomas is still waiting for the opportunity No. 2 in Columbus. If the Hawks keep playing the way they have so far this season, though, that wait may not last much longer. Hawken has gone 57-14-6 over the last three-plus seasons, but has been upset in district finals each of the last two years by Cornerstone Christian. In doing so, the Patriots knocked the Hawks off their perch as the area`s longtime Division III soccer power. But Hawken, with Carrel-Thomas leading that charge, is working hard to regain that position. The Hawks went 14-1-1 in the regular season and are they top seed in the upcoming Division III NDCL District tournament. \"I`m completely confident in the way we`re going to play,\" said Carrel-Thomas, who has 14 goals and six assists so far this season. \"I feel that we are one of the only teams around the area that has beaten every team we`re supposed to beat, except for the one exception (a 4-0 loss to CVCA`s B team). \"Otherwise, I think our record speaks for our play and work habits, and I think that we`re going to be fine.\" Carrel-Thomas has made the move to striker this year after excelling the last two seasons as one of the area`s better mid-fielders. As a sophomore, he scored 10 goals and assisted on 10 others. Last year, Carrel-Thomas earned N-H Varsity honors, contributing 21 goals and six assists as Hawken went 12-4-3. When he came to the program, Carrel-Thomas didn`t have to be a goal scorer because the Hawks has a pretty good primary option in that regard - former News-Herald player of the year Marshall Plow, who scored 52 goals as a senior in 2003 and is now a junior striker at Washington University in St. Louis. Hawken coach Dani Giulvezan has asked Carrel-Thomas to be adaptable in recent year, moving from defense to mid-field and now to striker, and he has been proficient with every opportunity. \"A good player can play anywhere, and a dominant player like him - he has the tools that makes him what he is because he can play anywhere,\" Giulvezan said. \"His willingness to accept the tactical decisions that we take, and when we change the system of play - he`s the first one to prove on the field that this is what we need to do and how we`re going to do it.\" Carrel-Thomas is one of three players remaining from the Hawks` 2003 team that lost the Division III state final to Cincinnati Madeira, along with fellow senior captains Adam Waxman and Zach Rosskamm. But that one experience has had to suffice since then. Going to state, then not even getting past districts the last two years would seem like a setback to some. Carrel-Thomas insists it`s not. \"When I look back on it, I really can`t say that it was incredibly disappointing losing the district finals, because we didn`t really have what it took at the time to get it done,\" Carrel-Thomas said. \"But now, I think we really have it. And I think our play will lead us through the playoffs.\" Going through the playoffs this year, there will be plenty of tough obstacles. Beachwood, the second seed in district play, placed itself in the upper half of the bracket for a potential shot at Hawken in a district semifina