“We had a lot of talent last year and a lot of people kind of have expected us to drop off, but these guys are playing well as a team,” said head coach Nathan Wilkey. “We’re going to surprise some people.”

The Falcon men are 5-0-1 with the tie coming to Oklahoma Baptist University last week.

“We’re winning and doing good, but there is still a lot we should do better,” Wilkey said. “Brent Hobson and Andrew Hull are our key players up front and Daniel Toledo, a captain, is always good. Daniel Sack is solid in the back. … Logan Glock is a very capable backup as goalkeeper and will do big things either later on this year or in the future.”

Other notable players who have stepped up for the Falcons include freshmen Scott Henderson and Chase Billings, as well as Brady Kaufmann who transferred from Bethel College after last season.

With the great start by an overachieving Falcon team, there have still been some hang-ups.

“We had a couple ineligible players, which is a disappointment, and we’ve had some other minor injuries,” Wilkey said.

The Falcon men are closing in on conference play and are picked to finish third in the conference behind last year’s KCAC tournament champion McPherson College and tournament runner-up Kansas Wesleyan.

One difference for Wilkey this season is his ability to be more involved with the team. Last year he stepped down as the Maize High School women’s soccer coach. Now he is able to focus on each player’s development year round and has more time to recruit talent in the spring.

The Falcon men will host Rogers State University on Sept. 18. Friends will finish nonconference play by traveling to York, Neb., Sept. 22 to face York College.

New coach has Falcon women playing successfully

An off-season coaching change has not hindered the women’s soccer team. Head coach Victor Garcia-Bebek has led the Falcons to a 3-2 record with three nonconference games left before KCAC play.

Friends was picked to finish last in the conference in preseason, but the team has been playing at a high level. It should be an interesting conference race in October.

“The morale is good. Very good,” Garcia-Bebek said in an e-mail interview. “We still have to prepare for good and worse. … We need to be strong when losing and smart when winning.

“We are getting to know our strengths and weaknesses. Every practice we continue to polish the strengths and correct our weaknesses. Our success will depend on how strong we are psychologically. How well we handle success and failure.”

The Falcon women will host Rogers State University on Sept. 18. A battle against Bellevue College on Sept. 25 will conclude nonconference games for the regular season.

“These two teams received votes in the last Nation's Top 25 poll,” Garcia-Bebek said in the e-mail. “After playing them we will know where we are at.”