Louisville 2021 Preseason All-Metro Boys

If you are looking for an area loaded with untapped potential and relatively unnoticed talent, look no further than the Louisville area in Kentucky. College coaches looking to unearth a hidden gem would do well to take a trip to the Bluegrass state and recruit in the River City. <span style="font-size: 1rem;">Here’s a glance at the players to watch this fall:</span> <strong>FORWARDS:</strong> [player_tooltip player_id="11555" first="Zach" last="Schonwetter"] of Kentucky Country Day is a very speedy player, with a knack for beating guys and getting in behind the defense, and he’s a top-class finisher. He is also receiving interest from a range of schools from NCAA Division I to Division III and, like his twin brother who is on this list, Zach received an offer from Rose-Hulman. ... North Oldham senior [player_tooltip player_id="11533" first="Sam" last="Murphy"] led his team to the Elite 8 of the state tournament a year ago behind a seven-goal, 14-assist season. With him and a bunch of other seniors returning, North Oldham could make another deep run. ... Butler senior [player_tooltip player_id="11519" first="Mustafa" last="Almohammedawi"] is a dangerous frontrunner who netted 19 goals in 15 matches last season. He guided Butler to the state’s Round of 16 before the team lost out to North Oldham. <strong>MIDFIELDERS: </strong>Kentucky Country Day senior [player_tooltip player_id="11520" first="Nate" last="Traughber"] might be the top high school prospect in Louisville this fall. From tracking back to facilitating the ball forward, Traughber is a smart player. He’s garnered interest from several NCAA Division I schools, making a name for himself with a second-team all-state selection as a sophomore and a first-team all-state honors last season as a junior. He was one of USA Today’s Kentucky state player of the year finalists last season. ... St. Xavier senior [player_tooltip player_id="11511" first="Matthew" last="Azzara"] is a 5-foot-11 midfielder who is physically talented, but his most important traits might be his high soccer IQ and his unselfishness in distributing the ball. Azzara was a very key player for the Tigers a year ago, and with his leadership in the midfield, look for St. Xavier to be very hard to break down in the midfield once again. ... Louisville Male senior [player_tooltip player_id="11419" first="Alex" last="Farias"] might be the most underrated player in the area. He should prove to be a very important piece of the Male midfield after returning from a successful season at USYS National League in the spring. Farias’ ability to hold up play and control the midfield will be needed if Male is going to compete with the likes of St. Xavier. <strong>DEFENDERS:</strong> The best place to start when talking about defenders in Louisville is St. Xavier senior [player_tooltip player_id="11485" first="Jeffrey" last="Cox"]. He will be looking to maintain the form that helped him earn first-team all-state honors as a junior as he helped lead Tigers to a 15th state title in November. Cox is a center-back who controls the defense. He also is a threat moving forward as well, as he showed with a playoff goal against Elizabethtown last season. ... Kentucky Country Day senior [player_tooltip player_id="11434" first="Brendan" last="Schonwetter"] was was a second-team all-state selection last year. He is being recruited by a variety of schools from Division I to Division III, and like his twin brother, has an offer from Rose-Hulman. Schonwetter is a technically gifted defender, who can pick out a pass, deliver a good diagonal ball, and is cool, composed and very good in the air. ... The top junior this fall should be duPont Manual’s [player_tooltip player_id="11542" first="Travis" last="Smith"], who recently had a stint in FC Cincinnati’s Academy program. He has returned home to anchor the Manual defense. ... St. Xavier senior [player_tooltip player_id="11525" first="Patrick" last="Walz"] spent<span style="font-size: 1rem;"> time in a Development Academy, returning last season from the Indiana Fire, and he made an immediate impact. He was a big reason the team allowed just 19 goals in 20 games and kept eight clean sheets as he earned first-team all-state honors.</span> <strong>GOALKEEPER:</strong> [player_tooltip player_id="11460" first="Enrique" last="Calderon"] of DuPont Manual is returning after earning first-team all-state honors last year. [table id=82 /] &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;