Nauset Boys Soccer Battles To Very End At Preseason Jamboree

NORTH EASTHAM – Upon arriving at the final moments of preseason last weekend, the Nauset boys soccer team found themselves in uncharted territory.

The Warriors had reached the deciding contest of Saturday’s annual Nauset Clash preseason jamboree, stuck with Sharon —the other finalist — in a scoreless draw after the full 40-minutes of a mini-match to determine the practice competition’s winner. They needed penalty kicks in order to crown a winner.

That’s an element of the game that Nauset hadn’t yet practiced during the young 2026 season, which began officially Aug. 24 (And why would they? PKs aren't used to end tied matches during the regular season; they come back into play for the state tournament). 

“We hadn't worked on penalty kicks,” head coach John McCully said. “I mean, we're trying to be better on the ball, good in possession, transition, defending, winning.”

Sharon went on to win the penalty kicks 4-3 after the 0-0 draw to claim the Nauset Clash title, but with the runner-up finish, the Warriors had to feel pleased after the long day of soccer. 

McCully said he was proud of the team’s “body of work during preseason.” Entering Saturday, the Warriors had already scrimmaged a handful of other teams.

“I think just the experiences of what we went through today will benefit down the road,” McCully said.

The Nauset Clash brought eight teams together in a round-robin style frenzy of mini-scrimmages across two separate brackets. The Warriors defeated E.O. Smith (a high school in Storrs, Conn.) 1-0, lost to Walpole 1-0 and defeated Silver Lake 1-0 to win their side of the field. Sharon emerged as the top side from their bracket with Falmouth, Plymouth South and Westport.

So everyone enjoyed a lot of soccer, but Nauset and Sharon certainly endured the most by virtue of the extra game. The scrimmages started at 10 a.m., and Nauset and Sharon were still playing past 2 p.m. Rainfall during the penalty kicks only enhanced the atmosphere, a competitive one even with the games being practice exhibitions.

“When you end preseason and get the bonus game, we've done something well, and so we just maximized our preseason,” McCully said afterward.

All told, the Warriors, a Division 3 team, played about 160 minutes of soccer — 75 percent of that against Division 2 schools, plus the match against out-of-state E.O. Smith, which similarly has a larger enrollment than Nauset. 

To that end, McCully felt they “stole” the game against E.O. Smith, a good side among a good bracket for the Warriors.

“That's what you want,” he said. “You want to be battle-tested.”

Sophomore Cameron Turner put the Warriors in front a minute into the second half in the Nauset Clash opener against Smith with a header that he popped through the top left corner off a delivery from junior Shakir Cross.

Sophomore Jacob Parkington scored the lone goal against Silver Lake to secure the win. In the 15th minute of the first half, he took a long throw from senior Lucas Wilkinson and fired past two defenders.

Then, Nauset had to hope for a fortunate result in their bracket’s other game — which they got — to clinch a spot in the final match, the bout with Sharon decided via penalties. 

So ended the preseason — a little nervy and tense for an exhibition, but the Warriors had earned themselves a couple days off before getting ramped up for the opener against Dennis-Yarmouth on Thursday.

“This is kind of why you want to put yourself in a situation like this, and these experiences, hopefully we’ll enjoy down the road somewhere as well,” McCully said.

The team’s captains are Wilkinson and fellow seniors Gabriel Walsh and Cooper Ruffner. The performances during the Nauset Clash of Wilkinson and Walsh, both center backs, stood out to McCully. 

The Warriors conceded two goals throughout the entire day. Sophomores Bobby Murphy and Matteo La Rosa rotated at goalkeeper.

“Lucas Wilkinson I thought was an absolute monster back there defensively,” McCully said. “Him and [Walsh], that partnership was excellent today.”

As the season begins, the Warriors are without junior Sawyer Harold, a key contributor at center forward, due to injury. His absence, according to McCully, has led to Nauset struggling and feeling uncomfortable in the attacking third, where they’re trying different players. Upon his return, Harold will be “dangerous,” McCully said.

“He'll bring a totally different dimension up front for us when we get him back,” he said.

Nauset finished 6-8-4 last year, missing out on a state tournament berth by a few spots. They’ll seek a return to the playoffs with a group still feeling the departures of two critical players last year in Omari Perry and Felipe Cronin.

“We're having a hard time replacing them right now, but that's why we keep training and keep practicing and everything else,” McCully said.