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GENEVA – Reece Leonard knew he had to step up for Geneva in a big way in his final season.
After watching nine seniors from the previous season graduate and seeing a large influx of newcomers to the starting roster, the senior knew he had to make some adjustments to both his style of play as well as his leadership style.
“Last year, I was more of a playmaker and not the main guy, I would say, but I had to step up into that role this year,” Leonard said “And coach (Jason) Bhatta basically told me to be more of a leader this year and to be more the main guy.”
As the leader of the young Vikings squad, Leonard embraced his new position and it showed on the field.
Leonard finished with nine goals and three assists for the Vikings, who went 13-5-4 and suffered a heartbreaking sectional final loss to Conant in penalty kicks. Leonard was an All-State selection.
Considering his positional value and accolades this season, Leonard is the 2024 Kane County Chronicle Boys Soccer Player of the Year.
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“I think we’ve been building to this year ever since he joined the team as a sophomore,” Bhatta said. “We knew he was a talent when he came on the team, but we always had an eye on the future and knew that he was a kid who could have a huge couple seasons his junior and senior year.
“He really set the stage his junior year. And this season, we knew that if we were going to do something this year those new seniors were going to need to make a good jump and he definitely made that jump.”
Leonard said he got a lot of help both skill-wise and leadership-wise by working with former Vikings midfielder and 2023 Kane County Chronicle Boys Soccer Player of the Year Liam O’Donoghue over the offseason.
“Me and Liam are really good friends and over the offseason we were training together,” Leonard said. “He basically took me under his wing my junior year and really taught me a lot of things of being a good player and a leader. So I used some of what he taught this season.”
That training was evident on the field. Leonard established himself not only as a solid piece in the middle of the pitch, but also up front as a key scorer.
“He really can do it all as a midfielder,” Bhatta said. “He can defend well and then he can get forward and be really creative offensively, especially on set pieces.
“Although he played in a little deeper role this year, his ability to understand the game and find those pockets of space and move up when he was able to still allowed him to have some offensive production.”
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No game better encapsulated that scoring ability than the Vikings' regional final against West Chicago. Leonard scored two goals – one on a corner kick and one on a direct free kick – and added an assist in the team’s 3-0 victory to help the Vikings win their first regional title since 2021.
“I think that win just gave the boys so much confidence, and his ability on the field really pushed us forward,” Bhatta said. “He gave a lot in that sectional final game against Conant as well, but I think that West Chicago game was the perfect encapsulation of Reece as a player. Offensively potent and able to do things on free kicks and dead balls as well as off of corner kicks.”
Bhatta said Leonard’s ability to lead the team by example will be missed next season.
“He was not the most loud kid, but the way that he conducted himself was so impactful on the boys, just to show them that this is the way we do things,” Bhatta said. “Beyond his obvious ability on the field and missing out on top talent like that, his presence on the team and the impact that he had with the boys in that way is going to be missed.”