Kiski Prep opens yr with new coach, new QBs and recreation abroad – Trib HSSN

By: Ted Sarneso
Thursday, August 21, 2025 | 10:56 PM
Kiski Faculty’s Hunter Richards works out forward of the 2025 season.
Kiski Faculty’s Aaron Smetanka leads his group throughout a apply forward of the 2025 season.
Kiski Faculty’s Jaivin Peel works out forward of the 2025 season.
Kiski Faculty’s Levi Porter works out forward of the 2025 season.
Kiski Faculty’s Mason Jones works out forward of the 2025 season.
It’s not usually that a chance just like the one the Kiski Faculty Cougar soccer group will expertise comes alongside.
The coaches and gamers perceive that, and the joy on the college is palpable.
“I’ve by no means been exterior the nation,” mentioned junior Levi Porter. “It’s fairly cool to get the possibility to go over there and play soccer.”
“Numerous different colleges have contacted me simply to see how they will get in on one thing like that,” mentioned head coach Aaron Smetanka. “It’ll be cool for our guys to see a special nation, tour some locations and play a pleasant, vital recreation to open the season.”
On Aug. 22, the Cougars will tackle the Eire Below-19 junior nationwide group, which is made up of the most effective youth gamers from the nation’s home membership groups, within the International Eire Soccer Match at Energia Park within the Donnybrook suburb of Dublin.
The distinctive matchup will headline a doubleheader of video games which may even function the Hun Faculty from New Jersey dealing with the UK-based NFL Academy.
The Cougars’ recreation will simply be a small a part of what the gamers, coaches and relations will expertise as soon as they land on Wednesday, Aug. 20.
They are going to take pleasure in a tour of Dublin, get a firsthand style of Gaelic soccer and hurling, partake in a welcome dinner and revel in an American-style pep rally the evening earlier than their recreation towards the Irish.
Then on Sunday, the group will take within the environment as Kansas State and Iowa State face off within the Aer Lingus School Soccer Basic at Aviva Stadium.
“We’ll even be staying on the College School of Dublin,” mentioned Smetanka. “The early arrival time even permits us the possibility to get acclimated to the time change and adapt to the sleep schedule.”
Not that the Cougars haven’t already ready for that.
“We’ve been adjusting our schedules right here to line up with the time change,” mentioned senior Hunter Richardson. “I believe we’ll be simply high quality.”
Being ready and centered is one thing that Smetanka is instructing his gamers in his first yr as head coach for the Cougars.
“His message to us was to be the place our ft are,” mentioned Porter.
“#WintheMoment. He has it on the whole lot,” mentioned Jaivin Peel, a switch from Western Beaver. “Win each rep, each play, each raise.”
Smetanka, who held earlier head teaching jobs at Greensburg Central Catholic and Saint Vincent School, is taking up a group that gained six of its final seven video games final yr to complete with a successful document for the primary time in three years.
Final yr’s success got here at a big value because the Cougars misplaced 16 gamers to commencement, so there’s lots to exchange.
“We do have a strong group of children returning,” Smetanka mentioned. “However for probably the most half, it’s nearly a brand-new roster. We’ve got a number of new guys and a number of positions to fill.”
To the gamers, Smetanka began the offseason off proper, organising Zoom conferences with all returning and incoming gamers to let the gamers get to know one another and the brand new offensive and defensive playbooks.
“It’s lots totally different than final yr,” mentioned Porter. “Coach has set it up as shut to a school program as potential. He’s put a number of vitality into this system, particularly in recruiting and ensuring everybody is prepared for the season.”
“Final yr, on the primary day of camp, we didn’t know half our teammates,” mentioned Richardson. “This yr, I believe I do know each child that’s coming right here from everywhere in the nation and people from overseas. He’s executed an awesome job of connecting us.”
One thing that’s been a significant assist for these which have been on the Kiski Faculty campus over the summer season is with the ability to work with a possible beginning quarterback earlier than camp.
Peel has been round, understanding with Porter, Richardson and senior Mason Jones amongst others. He will likely be one in every of two gamers competing to take over for Mason Smith, who stepped up on the place final yr and graduated.
“We didn’t know both quarterback final season till we acquired right here for camp,” mentioned Richardson. “It’s good to know we may have a man who can learn defenses nicely and be somebody we will belief. I count on us to have a greater season and add on to what we did final yr.”
“With Jaivin being from the WPIAL, we all know the type of competitors he confronted and that he broke a number of information,” mentioned Smetanka. “However we even have a child, Machael Armstrong, coming in from the state of Indiana that additionally set a number of information. It’s going to be an excellent competitors between the 2.”
Armstrong was a three-year starter at his earlier highschool and is a twin menace. He’s had been making an attempt to get out to among the Cougars’ camps earlier in the summertime and has executed nicely within the classroom, compiling a 3.9 GPA.
“He’s getting a number of seems from Ivy League and NESCAC colleges,” mentioned Smetanka. “Jaivin additionally reclassified himself as a sophomore, so he’s setting himself up nicely for recruitment in a couple of years.
“We’re going to ensure we push each of those guys throughout camp and make certain they’re ready. I see them each capable of play on the subsequent degree. It’ll be enjoyable to observe them study collectively and assist one another be higher gamers and other people.”
Porter, who additionally reclassified this offseason, returns once more as a junior and would be the point of interest offensively for the Cougars.
Since his reclassification, Smetanka says Porter’s gotten a proposal from Jap Michigan and is seeing good push from a number of MAC groups with different colleges ready to see movie from the tip of this yr.
“We’ll proceed to feed him the ball, however we even have guys that may sub him to maintain him as recent as potential, as a result of a number of these guys are taking part in each offense and protection,” mentioned Smetanka. “We wish to preserve the damage and tear on these guys to a minimal.”
Richardson additionally performs either side of the ball as a decent finish and a defensive finish. He completed final yr with 22 tackles, eight for loss, and added a sack on a protection that allowed 21 factors per recreation.
Alongside the offensive line, the Cougars return three starters in sophomore Julius Aue, senior Jeremy Bjick and junior Stevey Shen. Aue and Bjick are from Germany and Shen hails from China.
“We even have some new guys coming in, and it’s going to be attention-grabbing to see how all of them mesh collectively,” mentioned Smetanka. “Simply seeing how they adapt to speaking on the sector with the brand new performs and schemes, getting our terminology down would be the largest factor.”
Some new guys coming in embody Maximillion McMillan from Paramus Catholic out of New Jersey, who’s a working again/linebacker, and Elijah White, a slot receiver from Macchiarola Excessive Faculty within the Bronx.
“Max has a couple of gives from Southern Missouri, Wagner, Monmouth, LIU and a Syracuse supply,” Smetanka mentioned. “Elijah additionally has a proposal from Wagner, and it will likely be attention-grabbing to see each come right here and mesh with what we now have.
“We even have some worldwide guys that we’re excited to see how they transition to taking part in right here within the U.S. However all that issues is how rapidly all of them alter and are available collectively as a unit.”
With an early begin to camp and a chance to bond as a group in Eire, the Cougars might find yourself meshing nicely and construct upon the momentum they’d on the finish of final season.
Kiski Prep
Coach: Aaron Smetanka
2024 document: 6-3
SCHEDULE
Date, Opponent, Time
8.22 at Junior Irish Wolfhounds, Dublin, Eire, 6
9.6 The Hill Faculty, 7
9.13 Saint James Faculty, 1
9.20 at Peddie Faculty (Hightstown, N.J.), 2
9.27 at Penn Constitution (Philadelphia), 1
10.4 at Wyoming Seminary (Kingston), 2
10.11 Blair Academy, 1
10.25 at Blue Ridge Faculty (St. George, Va.), 2
11.1 Linsly Faculty, 2
STATISTICAL LEADERS
Passing: Mason Smith*
500 yards, 6 TDs
Speeding: Levi Porter
775 yards, 6 TDs
*Graduated
FAST FACTS
• In his first two seasons at Western Beaver, Jaivin Peel shattered the college’s passing yards document of 1,700 yards. He threw for two,889 yards his freshman yr and a pair of,543 as a sophomore for a complete of 5,432 yards.
• Other than his 775 yards on the bottom, Levi Porter amassed almost 1,100 yards of whole offense. He collected 252 kickoff return yards and scored a landing whereas additionally intercepting the ball 3 times on protection and returning two for touchdowns.
• Smetanka’s teaching document features a 19-36 document in six years (2019-2024) at Saint Vincent and a 10-10 mark in two seasons at Greensburg Central (2017-2018).
Tags: Kiski School

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