There will not be varsity boys’ soccer games to watch this fall at Wiscasset Middle High School. Cameron Bishop, athletic director/vice principal cancelled the program for the second season in a row due to a lack of players. Boys who want to work on their soccer skills will be permitted to practice with the Wolverine girls’ varsity team, the same as last season, said Bishop.

Bishop told Wiscasset Newspaper the numbers of boys expressing an interest in playing soccer did not warrant going forward with a team. “Even playing eight-man soccer we needed at least 13 players to comfortably form a team. This past spring when we did a head count we only had six or seven guys willing to make a commitment to playing,” he said.

Had enough boys signed up, he continued, the Wolverines would have played in a newly formed eight-player league sanctioned by Maine Principals Association. The league was formed last year for high schools like WMHS experiencing declining enrollment and lack of students interested in playing soccer. Like WMHS, five other Mountain Valley Conference high school members had decided to play eight-player soccer in the fall. They include Dirigo, Telstar, Spruce Mountain, Lisbon and Madison. The other high schools making up the league are Vinalhaven, Temple Academy, Rangely, Pine Tree Academy, Dexter and Carrabec in Anson which recently announced it was leaving the MVC to join the East/West Conference. WMHS will play its varsity 2023-24 basketball season in the East/West Conference.

“Some of the high schools mentioned are just playing eight-player girls’ soccer; others are doing it for both their boys’ and girls’ programs like we had hoped to do,” explained Bishop. “There’s currently no playoff or post season in this league and teams have the option of playing on either a regulation size soccer field or a smaller field, better suited to fewer players.”

The last season the Wolverines had a boys’ varsity soccer team was in 2021 when they struggled through a 14-game MVC schedule. Their final game on Oct. 22 ended in an 8-0 post season loss to Lisbon. Wiscasset High started its boys’ soccer program in the 1970s and for many years had enough players for both varsity and junior varsity teams.

This changed after the high school’s enrollment began dropping 10 years ago, a trend that has continued systemwide. Around 2019, WMHS opened its soccer program to Boothbay-area students after Boothbay Region High School curtailed its girls’ soccer program. The program was open to boys as well but few Boothbay students have participated. “I reached out to their athletic director and he told me there weren’t any boys interested in playing soccer this year,” said Bishop.

Wiscasset ended its boys’ summer soccer program two years ago. A girls’ summer soccer program was offered this year but was cancelled for lack of interest.

Bishop said the player numbers look better for the Wolverine girls’ varsity soccer program; about 13 or 14 players plan to play this fall. Keara Hunter will coach this year’s team in place of Chelsea Taylor who will be on maternity leave. Hunter coached WMHS’s girls’ soccer team last year. “I’d like to hire a coach to work with Keara to help with any boys that want to work on their soccer skills and hopefully begin rebuilding the program.” Bishop said interested candidates could contact him at WMHS. Online registration is underway for WMHS students planning to play sports in the fall.

WMS returning to Co-ed soccer

Declining enrollment and lack of student interest has resulted in Wiscasset Middle School combining its boys’ and girls’ soccer players into one co-ed team for the forthcoming season. This was last done in 2021 during the pandemic. Bishop said WMS will leave the Busline League and play against junior high schools with student enrollments similar to Wiscasset’s. The schedule includes playing co-ed junior high teams from Hope, Jefferson, Appleton, Lincolnville, Nobleboro, South Bristol, Islesboro, Bristol, Vinalhaven and Boothbay. WMS rejoined the Busline League for the 2022 soccer season after a two-year absence, the boys’ soccer program having been suspended due to a lack of student interest. There was enough interest last year to field both boys’ and girls’ soccer teams. The boys’ team roster was helped by the addition of three home-schooled players.