East Hill Christian boys soccer swinging above its weight in first FHSAA season

Pensacola’s friendly neighborhood underdogs have been taking aim at some of the biggest soccer programs in the area this season.

In its first season of competition at the FHSAA level, East Hill Christian’s boys soccer team is swinging well above its weight, building a 7-4 record while competing as an FHSAA independent.  

The Eagles have won seven of their last eight contests dating to Nov. 22, knocking off bigger schools like Milton, Walton, Freeport and South Walton. Wins against the latter three programs have come by a 19-6 margin.

East Hill Christian has taken some lumps along the way but hasn’t backed down in matches against local teams contending for playoff spots in much larger classifications like Tate and Booker T. Washington.   

“We literally are the underdog in every single match that we go into,” East Hill Christian head coach Rudy Seelmann said. “Being a school with only approximately 100 seniors and only maybe 50 of them are male students. … Watching these guys compete against larger schools with 2,000 students is fantastic.

“They have definitely raised the level and are playing great. They’ve raised the bar for East Hill for certain.”

Making the jump

East Hill Christian first began “exploring” a potential FHSAA return in 2018, over a decade after the school dropped its FHSAA status in 2007 and began competing in the Panhandle Christian Conference.

Schools attempting to join the FHSAA are required to complete a two- to three-year period as an independent application member while meeting basic FHSAA program requirements.

Seelmann said making the jump made sense for boys soccer not only because the team had enough quality on its roster, but also to benefit the club soccer players at the school.

Previously, PCC competition overlapped with club soccer’s fall season, meaning East Hill Christian players pulled double duty in the fall months and went without competitive soccer for three to four months in the spring.

Competing in the FHSAA presented a set of new challenges for East Hill Christian, however.

PCC games were almost exclusively held at Ashton Brosnaham Park while FHSAA away games have taken East Hill Christian to Freeport, Niceville, DeFuniak Springs and soon to Crawfordville outside of Tallahassee.

Additionally, fielding a roster at the FHSAA level required extra commitment towards the development of players in middle school and junior varsity, the results of which have been plain to Eagles players.

“(Seelmann) has taken this program from almost nothing and built it and built it,” senior attacking midfielder Jacob Dickson said. “I’m so proud of where he started with the team and what it’s become. I’m glad that Rudy is our coach.”

A coach’s new start

East Hill Christian’s head coach is himself beginning a new stage in his soccer journey.

Seelmann has deep ties to the Pensacola soccer community, be it as a goalkeeper for the University of West Florida in the 1990s or recently as a goalkeeper for Pensacola FC in the National Premier Soccer League and Gulf Coast Premier League.

A medical incident brought an end to his playing career recently, however, forcing Seelmann to reorient his passion for soccer completely into coaching.

“While I can’t do it myself anymore, it’s so rewarding to watch these guys get their successes,” Seelmann said of his new path. “I’m living vicariously through these guys every single day watching them grow and develop as not only soccer players, but as good people.”

Seelmann has brought a possession style of play to East Hill Christian and emphasizes that his team play the game in a developed way.

“We are not a kickball team,” Seelmann said. “We are a team that possesses the ball, makes the other team chase us around to open up gaps and find offensive players and advance up the field. We are not a kickball team that kicks it to the most athletic guy and watches him go.”

Dickson and Malachi Waters have combined for 34 goals and 17 assists, representing over 80 percent of the team’s offensive production this season, while junior Isaiah Waters has stepped into the starting goalkeeper role after the Eagles’ starter was lost due to an early-season injury.

For Dickson, East Hill Christian’s success has made for a satisfying final season in his high school career even if the Eagles are ineligible for the FHSAA state tournament.

The potential to inspire future East Hill Christian soccer teams is reward enough.   

“I have 17 kids in my class and playing against kids that have 300+ kids in their class, it’s really big for our school,” Dickson said. “We’re kind of putting East Hill on the map and that’s pretty exciting.

“A lot of my club teammates didn’t even know what East Hill was… They kind of took it as a joke and no big deal. But coming out and getting results, now they know who East Hill is so we’re kind of earning that respect.”

Eric J. Wallace can be reached at ejwallace@pnj.com or 850-525-5087.

Get to know East Hill Christian soccer

Head coach: Rudy Seelmann

Record: 7-4

Classification: FHSAA independent

Home Stadium: Escambia County Stadium at Ashton Brosnaham Park

Upperclassmen: Jacob Dickson (24 goals, 10 assists), Malachi Waters (10 goals, 7 assists), Buddy Hubbard, Jason Grizzard, Isaiah Waters, Noah Dickson, Jonathan Graves, Luke Seelman, Evan Dennis, Isaac Lewis, Jackson Reyes, Jeremy Herren, Johnathon Coltrane, John Waters, Memphis Jocson

Upcoming Games: Jan. 20 at Milton; Jan. 21 vs. Freeport; Jan. 27 at Wakulla Christian School