Harbor Springs boys soccer eyeing late-season run as they follow girls' lead

BOYNE FALLS — Jeff Suffolk has always believed his Harbor Springs boys soccer program is capable of big things at the state level. 

Now, Suffolk doesn’t have to look far to point out that, just because it’s a small, northern Michigan program, the only obstacles truly in the way are in the mind. 

The Harbor girls team winning a state championship in the spring, taking down a pair of private school powers in the process, helped with that. 

“I could see the pathway to a state championship when I first began coaching,” Suffolk said. “I don’t think anyone truly believed what we were saying, then now the girls have shown everybody, ‘Oh yeah, it is totally possible.’ You get hot, go on a run and you’re through. That’s really all it takes.”

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Like many around the area, Suffolk and his team were right there being fans for the Harbor girls in the spring and are still pumped up about it as the boys fall season begins. 

“It was awesome,” he said. “We’re still giddy about the girls and it really brought a lot of recognition to up north soccer.”

But now the focus is all on the boys. And, it’s a team very much capable of doing what Suffolk believes. 

The Rams are coming off three straight trips into regionals, including a 2023 regional final appearance that closed in just a 1-0 loss. 

His current group is young and – at least early in the season – have some challenges to overcome. 

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The Rams have just three seniors, one of which is a three-time all-state forward in Henry Juneau. 

But, one of those challenges comes in learning how to play without Juneau early in the season, with the senior sidelined from an offseason shoulder injury, at least for a few more weeks.

“It’s a good challenge for everyone involved, especially for the young guys,” Suffolk said. “If they can go out and win some games on their own, then get a first team all-state senior back, they’ll see what they can do together.”

Juneau is of course bummed to be missing the start, though he’s excited about this group of young guys on the team. 

“It’s fun to be a captain again and teach all these kids the best I can and be a good mentor for them,” Juneau said. “They’re all developing really well and they’ve all been playing together for a long time, so they’ve got good chemistry and everything like that.”

Along with the senior Juneau, who will surly climb the state record books when he returns, Aaron Baughman was selected as a captain, along with a pair of sophomores, speaking even more to that young roster.

Over the weekend, Juneau was at Boyne Mountain coaching up the young guys along with Suffolk on the sidelines at the Boyne Mountain Invitational, which welcomed a host of state powers. 

The Rams met the Division 2 and 3 defending state champs in De La Salle and Detroit Country Day, along with Division 2 semifinalist Cranbrook Kingswood. 

Sure, they came out of the weekend with a 1-3-2 record, beating Grass Lake in a 1-0 final, but Suffolk is looking beyond that record and the benefit of seeing that kind of competition.

“That’s what I wanted these guys to see, kind of what they’re made of early,” Suffolk said. “We go through a long spell of conference play. I wanted them to have the belief system early in the season that they know what it takes.”

Things will of course flip around in Harbor’s record, with the Rams one of the favorites within the Northern Shores conference once again. 

They’ll head to Kingsley in the week ahead to get conference play started, then finally get in a home game against Kalkaska on Tuesday, Sept. 8. 

Like his coach, Juneau has belief in this team to do big things ahead. He too is pulling inspiration from watching the girls in the spring, which gave answers to the question: why not us? 

“That was amazing. I’m really happy for them,” Juneau added. “The belief is totally there. They set a standard for people and hopefully we can do the same.”

Reach Sports Editor Drew Kochanny at dkochanny@petoskeynews.com and follow him on X @DrewKochanny and Instagram @drewkochanny

This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Harbor Springs boys soccer eyeing late-season run as they follow girls’ lead