DeMotte Christian Knights

Eighty minutes wasn’t enough to separate the two teams on Tuesday in the quarterfinals of sectional 37. Lafayette Central Catholic scored early to jump ahead 1-0. Around twenty minutes later, DMC responded via a Trevor Babulic goal late in the first half. Regular time would end 1-1, and after two scoreless halves of overtime, Central Catholic prevailed in the penalty shootout, a frustrating result for a Knights team that had put in a solid performance against a formidable opponent. It was an uphill battle for the Knights this season after losing seven starters from last year’s historically great roster. Still, Coach Dunham is proud of the way the young team improved throughout the season, capped by their performance in sectionals, despite the result. The future is bright for the DMC soccer program, which loses only one key player this offseason, senior defender and captain Marc de Jager. This year’s team was extremely young, playing four freshmen in key varsity moments– Trevor Babulic, Benji Reeb, Ian Cox, and Simeon Terpstra. Coach Dunham has high expectations for their sophomore seasons. Other key returners include juniors Chase Burlingham, Brady Roodzant (the other captain from 2024), and Titus Terpstra, and sophomores Harper Perkins and Nate Rottier. With many of the Knights’ senior-heavy 2024 opponents losing large portions of their starting eleven, Dunham and the players have high hopes for 2025, which promises to be another great season of Knights soccer.