Four -Class Boys Soccer Plays Mainly 4 -Team Districts

By Jim Wieners

Beginning this school year High School Soccer is a four class sport and this year 226 high schools will be playing Boys Soccer.

So the largest 192 schools will be divided into the largest three classes with 16 districts each and four teams in each district. Class One will have eight districts, four teams in six and five teams in two, but no area teams will be in Class One. The make up girls’ districts will be the same but the number of teams in Class One has yet to be determined.

Among Florissant Valley area high schools, plus Lutheran North, there will be no more than two high school teams in any districts. There are three area high school teams each in Class Four and Class Two and there are two in Class Three.

In Class Four Hazelwood Central and Hazelwood West are in District Six while McCluer North is in District Four. In Class Two Trinity Catholic and Lutheran North are in District Five while North Tech is in District Six. In Class Three Hazelwood East is in District Four and McCluer is in District Seven.

KLEIN REPLACES DeSMET LEGEND VITELLO — Josh Klein, a 1997 graduate of DeSmet Jesuit High and member of the 1995 Class 4A State Championship team becomes only the second head soccer coach in school history. Klein replaces legend Greg Vitello whom he played for and coached for, as a junior varsity coach for six years and was an assistant for the last four years including the 2011 Class Three State Championship Team. This year DeSmet will be in Class Four, District Five.

Vitello was not only a coach but also a biology and physical education teacher for 46 years. Vitello had a record of 758-297-134 and won five state titles. Vitello’s first title team in 1991 (Class 4A) was a co-championship with St. John Vianney, a 0-0 tie that was filled with yellow cards and a red card in overtime. The other four titles were outright including 1993 and 1997, both in Class 4A.

Vitello also coached baseball for 35 years and had a 491-284-7 record including a Class 4A State Championship in 2000.

CLASS DROPS — TRINITY CATHOLIC — With a listed enrollment from last year of 286 students, adjusted to 387 due to the 1.35 private-school multiplier, Trinity Catholic dropped in enrollment classes from Three to Two in Football, Softball and Girls Volleyball. Boys Soccer moved up from Class One to Class Two due to the sport now being in four classes while Boys and Girls Basketball remain in Class Three.

 

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