Layton's boys soccer team didn't achieve its postseason goal of advancing deep in the playoffs, but, ultimately, 2006 proved to be a successful campaign for the Lancers.
After a rocky start, a key personnel change spurred Layton to a second-place finish in Region 1, a first-round playoff victory and a 10-win season.
"Overall, the year was fantastic," said coach Rick Talamantez.
For the first time in recent memory, Layton began its league schedule 0-2. Things weren't going well at that point, and it was clear something drastic would be required to turn the team around.
Accordingly, Talamantez took star forward Kellen Christensen and inserted him at sweeper, where he played for his club team, Inter FC. The move occurred before the Lancers' second league game, and the squad surged after that point.
Ideally, Christensen would've stayed up top or in midfield, but his willingness to make the move to defense was crucial. He finished with six goals offensively, and his talent helped shore up Layton's defense.
"He gave up a lot," Talamantez said of Christensen's move. ". . . He decided to give that up for the sake of the team."
Christensen, who was selected as a first-team All-State defender, will play next year at Denver University.
After dealing with personality clashes for several seasons, this year's group at Layton didn't contain any of those problems. Accordingly, team chemistry was vastly improved in 2006.
"It really just made for a nice season," said Talamantez.
Looking ahead to next year, Layton will be forced to replace a number of key players. Besides Christensen, the leader of this year's squad, Colby Stratford, Nick O'Neal, Eli Priest, Andrew Gardiner and others will all graduate.
Talamantez will rely on playmaker Nyle Ortiz, who will be a senior next year, to anchor the squad. Ortiz had a somewhat quiet season, but he'll counted on for big contributions as a senior.
"Honestly, truthfully, I think we're going to do alright," said Talamantez.
The race for next year's Region 1 title could be fought out between Layton, Viewmont and Davis.
Layton 2006 boys soccer season recap
Record: 10-5-1 (31 pts)
League: 7-3-0 (21 pts.
State: Lost in quarterfinals
Results
3/17 Layton 1, Brighton 1
3/21 Davis 3, Layton 0
3/23 Viewmont 1, Layton 0
3/28 Layton 4, Clearfield 0
4/04 Layton 3, Fremont 0
4/18 Layton 3, Weber 2
4/20 Davis 2, Layton 1
4/22 Juan Diego 2, Layton 1
4/25 Layton 2, Viewmont 1
4/27 Layton 3, Clearfield 0
5/04 Layton 4, Fremont 0
5/09 Layton 4, Northridge 0
5/11 Layton 4, Weber 2
5/12 Layton 4, Northridge 0
5A FIRST ROUND
5/16 Layton 4, Bingham 1
5A QUARTERFINAL
5/19 Brighton 4, Layton 0
E-mail: drasmussen@desnews.com