There are only a few things more certain than the Perryville boys’ soccer program’s control over the Jefferson County Athletic Association Conference.
However, there isn’t much.
Perryville collected a 3-0 victory over Windsor on Oct. 19 to capture yet another conference championship after an impressive 5-0 mark against JCAA foes. Perryville has won the title nine of the last 10 seasons.
“It is one of the goals we have at the beginning of the season,” Perryville boys soccer coach Jerry Fulton said. “If you look at it we are doing all of this against Class 3 schools. The only school that is in Class 2 with us is St. Pius. DeSoto has gotten better along with several of the teams that are in our conference. We feel very fortunate and blessed to win the conference each year. The other teams are probably getting tired of it.”
The Pirates outscored its opponents 21-1 in those five games with the blemish coming against Hillsboro on Sept. 15 in a 6-1 Pirate victory. Perryville defeated DeSoto 1-0 on Sept. 27 which was its closest victory of the conference contests.
Fulton believes his team is getting better, but is still leaving goals out on the field by not finishing goal-scoring opportunities.
“We have eight losses this year and five of them are by one goal,” Fulton said. “In those losses I guarantee we hit the post and crossbar multiple times. I know for a fact there was one player that hit the post three times against Saxony himself. That part of our game is still a work in progress, but it is better than it was.”
The next goal for the Pirates would be a district championship, which Perryville did last season before falling in the state championship game. Fulton believes that the loss to Saxony Lutheran in penalty kicks on Oct. 6 could hurt his team’s chances of earning the top seed in the Class 2, District 1 tournament, but if coaches look at the bigger picture the Pirates have as good of a case as any team in the district.
Perryville (14-9) earned the third seed in the Class 2, District 1tournament, which begins Saturday at The Bank of Missouri Soccer Complex. Saxony (11-9) is the second seed, while Affton is the top seed. Perryville will take on Fredericktown (5-13) at 11:30 a.m. while Saxony takes on North County (4-16)
“In district play we have scored 19 goals and we have beaten some of the teams that those other teams have lost to or played close games with,” Fulton said. “All I can do is put a good word in for my team and see how the seeds shake out. I think we have a case for that top seed though. But our goal to win a district tournament starts Saturday regardless.”
