MARSHFIELD – After two years of going up a division for the varsity girls program and one season for the boys, the Vermont Principals’ Association have slated Caledonia United back into division IV for the upcoming soccer season.
Head coach Spencer Morse will take on his third season leading the girls program this fall for Cal United, a three-school cooperative made up Twinfield, Cabot and Danville student-athletes. In their inaugural season, Morse led the program to its first ever Division III playoff win, upsetting Lake Region on the road. They had more success last fall, posting a winning record in the rugged Mtn. League at 7-6-1, while securing their first home playoff match in the Division III state tournament. Cal United fell to Woodstock in a penalty kick shootout thriller. The timing of the Division IV return for Morse and his program couldn’t be better. His team will be challenged to fill the holes left by a talented senior class, led by two-time Vermont All-State selection Sloane Morse. Cal United enters a wide-open division that saw eleventh seeded Richford knock off two of the top three seeds to cap off an improbable championship run last November.
On the boys side, head coach Peter Stratman welcomes a return to Division IV for his talented Cal United team after another double-digit win season in 2024. Stratman’s program earned their first ever Division III playoff win last fall in their inaugural season, earning the #4 seed in the state tournament. Fair Haven ended their playoff run in the quarterfinals. Cal United will exit a powerhouse division dominated by Stowe, Peoples Academy and defending champion Green Mountain in recent years. Division IV has plenty of soccer pedigree with the likes of Twin Valley and defending champion Winooski, but Stratman returns a treasure trove of talent on the pitch this fall and will likely be a title contender. Stratman has won nearly 60 matches since taking over the reins at Twinfield-Cabot six years ago, including a pair of trips to the Final Four. He lost only two seniors to graduation from a team that tied a program record with 11 wins, while navigating the rigors of a highly competitive Mtn. League. Eli Russell and Omar Miksic-Knibb earned First Team All-Mtn. League honors for their outstanding seasons, with Russell also nabbing a VT All-State selection. Miksic-Knibb tallied a team leading 18 goals as a freshman.
Practices around the state are already underway, with the high school soccer season set to start in less than two weeks.
