Th e Fountain Hills High School boys soccer season ended with a 3-1 loss to Scottsdale Christian Academy on Friday, Jan. 27. The Falcons struggled early in the season, but they played much more competitive matches in the second half of the season.

Success is sometimes judged comparative to expectations, and the Falcons had low expectations before the season even started. One month before their first game on Nov. 30, they still didn’t have a coach. There were also more new players than returning players, and according to junior Jaxson Butcher, the team had very little chemistry early on.

“I think we actually expected to do worse,” Butcher said. “We really weren’t thinking we’d win a game at all at the start. Once we won that Phoenix Christian game, we had more of a positive attitude. We really went into games thinking we could win them and that’s why, if you notice the score lines after the Phoenix Christian game, they’re a lot closer than any of the other games.”

The Falcons beat Phoenix Christian on Jan. 5, and they held four of their last five opponents under five goals scored. The Falcons ended 1-11, but their final two games were within reach. The Falcons outscored Highland Prep 2-1 in the second half of their 4-2 loss, and they were tied 1-1 at halftime with Scottsdale in the finale.

Despite their losing record, the Falcons stayed positive each and every time they stepped on the field. One of the biggest reasons why was junior Danny Gonzales, who never missed a home game.

Gonzales injured his leg on the very last practice last season, and he was still recovering from surgery this season. Gonzalez communicated with his teammates while they were on the field and told them what to look out for. He was one of the first boys to show up and he always stayed till the end, and he’s excited to play next season.

First year head coach Malcolm Cutting is also a very positive coach according to his players and he took over both the boys and girls soccer teams this year. Cutting moved to Fountain Hills from Kentucky after retiring, and he had to learn the players and their skill sets in a short time frame.

“I think they’ve gone through too many coaches over the years,” Cutting said. “Number one they have to trust you…. same thing with me. They have to know my style, my expectations of them, and to trust that they’re with a coach that cares and knows what he’s doing.”

Even Cutting admits that he needs to improve over the offseason, and he’ll have the time to properly prepare this time around. Cutting hasn’t done his exit interview with school administrators by the time of writing, but he said if they ask him to come back, he will absolutely commit.

“I’m not doing this for a one-time thing,” Cutting said. “My goal is to rebuild it, and then once it’s rebuilt, have a sustaining program for all the kids.”

The Falcons haven’t had a winning season since they went 10-7 in 2016-17. Last year, they went 3-11-1, and they won those three games with an interim head coach. The Falcons haven’t had much luck in recent seasons, but there is a positive feeling looking forward now.

“It was definitely a learning experience for a lot of the younger guys and newer players,” Butcher said. “I think that most of us had a lot of fun with the season, even though it didn’t end up so well and with the best record. I think we came out of it with a positive attitude.”

The Falcons will graduate three seniors, and two were new to the team this year. Nico Cini was a four-year player, and Zacharie Gratton and Alex Fessenden were brought on to help the defense this year.

There are four juniors who could return for a senior season: Josh Ball, Jaxson Butcher, Brendan Davies and Garren Keeler. They can lead a team with several key rising sophomores and juniors in 2023-24.

“I think the freshmen showed a lot of potential this year,” Butcher said. “If they play in the offseason and find a club to go to, and they work hard, we could have a really good season next year. Especially if we have our returning players come back and they want to play next year, then next year’s looking pretty promising.”

Sophomores Griffin Bos and Tyler Griggs could return for a third year in a row, and they were joined by fellow sophomore Matthew D’Anna this year. The Falcons’ four freshmen, Matthew Gonzales, Xander Hewett, Mason Meyen and Leander Rosenquist, each showed flashes of skill and talent and they could be key players next season.