Last season was sort of an anomaly in Schuylkill League boys' soccer.
For only the second time in the 15 seasons since the league broke into two divisions, neither Blue Mountain nor Schuylkill Haven won their respective division titles.
Expect that to change this season.
The Schuylkill League's two winningest programs with more than 600 wins and 16 league titles between them, the Eagles and Hurricanes are favored to return to their usual positions atop the Division I and Division II standings, respectively, in 2013.
Blue Mountain, which finished as the Division I wild card behind Jim Thorpe a year ago, returns its entire starting lineup. The Hurricanes also bring back a veteran bunch from a squad that lost to Williams Valley in both the league and district finals.
"They were better than us," Blue Mountain coach Rob Burcik said about 2012. "Neither one of us (Blue Mountain and Schuylkill Haven) played poorly. Williams Valley was loaded, Jim Thorpe was loaded and both had good years."
Here's a look at both division races this season:
Division I
Blue Mountain lost only two seniors from last year's 11-9 club that lost to Williams Valley in the league semifinals and was one-and-done in the District 11 Class AA tournament.
Led by senior goalkeeper Jake Gillespie - who tossed eight shutouts - and a defense that includes seniors Alex Miller and Tyler Weller, juniors Lyle Luckenbill and Drew Rudacille and sophomore Angus Fortune, Blue Mountain will be tough to score on.
Offensively, however, is where Blue Mountain needs to improve. The Eagles scored just 35 goals (1.75 average) last season.
Senior forwards Tristan Coello (13 goals) and Bryant Penberth (9 goals, 6 assists) return to lead the Blue Mountain offense.
"So far, in all of our scrimmages and our two games, we've only scored two goals," said Burcik, noting losses to Whitehall and Kutztown in Saturday's Jon Eubert Tournament.
"We're just not playing very well. We have to get our midfielders helping out. So far, we haven't produced well."
After Blue Mountain, the other five teams could be in a battle royale for the Division I wild card.
Defending division champion Jim Thorpe lost nine seniors from last year's squad, including All-Area first-team selection Corey Ligenza (27 goals) and second-team picks Matt Rich (16 goals), Mike Principe (6 goals) and goalkeeper Justin Kaminski.
Senior midfielder Steven Principe (16 goals) returns to lead a very young team that will have a lot of new faces.
North Schuylkill is the most senior-dominated of the group, returning 10 letterwinners from last year's 4-14 squad, including goalkeeper Matt Roberts.
Pine Grove has just two seniors on its roster, but earned a non-league victory Saturday over Pottsville in the Cardinal Classic. Brandon Kessock and Humza Hnesh return to lead the Crimson Tide.
Tamaqua must replace goalkeeper Tyler Cimino, but leading scorer Cesar Picone returns. The Blue Raiders have a roster that has 15 players in grades 9-10.
Division II
Williams Valley had a season to remember in 2012, going undefeated through the regular season and winning the school's first Schuylkill League and District 11 Class A titles.
Gone from that squad are three players - All-Area Co-Players of the Year T.J. Leiter and Colin Harrison and All-Area first-teamer Dennis Jansen - who combined to score 100 goals with 51 assists. Also gone is All-Area first-team keeper Billy Schaeffer (12 shutouts).
Despite the losses, the cupboard is not bare. Senior Ben Rautzahn (7 goals, 22 assists), Jake Carl (4 goals, 12 assists) and Jarred Matter are among eight returnees who saw extensive varsity action.
"We have a lot of work ahead of us," said Williams Valley's Seth Shuey, the Republican-Herald Coach of the Year. "We know teams will be out to get us because of last year. We now have the targets on our backs, and with that said have the mindset that every game will be a battle.
"We have to use last year as a motivation tool to prove we will not be one outstanding year and done."
Schuylkill Haven's billing as preseason division favorite will be put to the test right away, as the Hurricanes host Williams Valley in their league opener Wednesday.
Marcus Repella (17 goals), Kyle McGarry (9 goals, 10 assists), Dominic Trimboli (7 goals), Jason Wilson (5 goals) and Tyler Yeakel (5 goals) return to pace the Hurricanes' offense.
"We need to get some scoring producation from our young men up front and our midfield," said Schuylkill Haven's Vanco Georgevic, who earned his 300th career win Saturday against Millersburg. "We can't take anything for granted.
"On paper, we have a much more experienced team overall. We have to take one game at a time. We must be consistent in our play."
The key question for Schuylkill Haven comes between the pipes, where junior Brad Fryer replaces Tyler Bartol as keeper. He'll have a veteran defense in front of him in seniors Adam Seltzer, Gene Werley, Trimboli and Josh Mairose, along with junior Luis Taylor.
"Defensively, during our scrimmages we had against Lehighton, Tamaqua and Northern Lehigh, we looked pretty good," Georgevic said. "We have four seniors playing defense for us; hopefully they will give support to the goalkeeper.
"He's coming along very nicely. He's played keeper from youth level on and he understands the game. He has big shoes to fill."
Tri-Valley and Nativity also made the District 11 Class A playoffs last season and will have solid teams again in 2013. While each team has to replace an All-Area first-team selection (Tri-Valley's Yancarlos Mendez and Nativity's Connor Holohan), talent remains.
Pete Laychock, who has 16 years of varsity soccer head coaching experience (9 years at Nativity, 1 at Minersville, 6 with Haven girls), takes over the reins for the Green Wave after serving as an assistant the past two seasons.
"Nativity could be the surprise team," Georgevic said. "In our division, you can not take a day off. It's a long season. You can never know what will happen."
Berks League
Last season was a breakout season for Hamburg, which qualified for the Berks playoffs for the first time in 21 years and lost to eventual champion Tulpehocken on penalty kicks in the opening round of the District 3 Class AA playoffs.
Most of that team returns for 2013 as the Hawks have high expectations.
Forward Austin Freeman (16 goals, 10 assists), midfielders Matt Prince and Mason Schnabel and goalkeeper Tyler Seidel - all seniors - lead a deep and balanced team that should return to the Berks playoffs.