Mike Vukovcan A new era of Hopewell High School Boys soccer under new head coach Ben Bezems is set to begin one week from today.
The Vikings competed in a scrimmage on Saturday against West Allegheny and over the next week will be competing in scrimmages with Butler and Fairview, while also playing in a tournament at Mars on Sunday and Monday.
The Bezems Era of Hopewell Boys Soccer will officially get underway next Tuesday at Ambridge.
After getting hired, Bezems made the decision to retain a member of the Hopewell staff from the past couple of years by retaining assistant coach Jose Gonzalez.
That was a tremendous decision because Gonzalez is not only a tremendous soccer mind but also has deep roots with the Hopewell Youth soccer program and is one of the better human beings you can find.
He also brings with him a ton of experience both coaching and playing the sport of soccer:
-Been coaching soccer in Hopewell since 2015
-President of Hopewell Soccer Club (2020-24)
-Head coach Hopewell Jr High Soccer (2021-23)
-Hopewell JV Head Coach and Varsity Assistant (2024-current)
-Played since he was 9 years old and collegiately at Point Park University
Vikings Sports Now had the pleasure of getting together with Gonzalez to talk soccer, not only about the Vikings 2026 boys’ team but the future of soccer in Hopewell.
I started off our conversation by asking him about how the transition with Coach Bezems has gone.
“That was a big reason why Coach Ben asked me to come back, the transition with the team and the familiarity I have with a lot of the players,” Gonzalez tells Vikings Sports Now. “I believe the kids have adapted very well with Coach Ben. I think the good thing with Coach Ben is he’s on the younger side but he’s also a teacher so he knows how to communicate with the players and is able to have that connection with them. I think they really respect him and can relate to him.”
“He’s definitely a teacher and is trying to teach our players the game of soccer. He wants to teach but at the same time, he wants them having fun doing it. Every coach has a different coaching style and Coach Ben’s style is trying to coach the kids to play the game the right way. He wants the boys to be confident when they play and No. 2, it doesn’t matter who they’re playing, he wants them to play aggressive.”
“We have a lot of talent in the program, especially with the sophomore and junior class. I believe they’re going to be a strong group.”
Gonazalez believes that this Hopewell team will have solid leadership from their 3 Captains- Tallon Coleman, Elijah Persi-Jones and RJ Bushnell and was quick to point out the strength of this team.
“I honestly believe and it’s always been a philosophy of mine, it’s important to be strong in the midfield and I believe we are,” said Gonzalez. ” Your midfield has to be strong and if it isn’t, then you’re going to have a tough time winning. I believe our midfield will be pretty strong. I believe we’ll have a good defense, which will be complementing our midfield a lot.”
“”We have a lot of talent in the program, especially with the sophomore and junior class. I believe they’re going to be a strong group.”
This group of boys has talent, but the question remains and likely the key to them winning is can they fill up the opposing net with goals. If they can do that, they’ll have a chance to be pretty good.
“I think that once we actually start the season, that you’re going to see that part is developing,” said Gonzalez. “That’s going to be our challenge, who’s going to be able to score goals. I think that we have a good group of kids that once they start smelling that blood, they’re going to get hungry. That’s going to be our work in progress and our challenge, if you want to call it that.”
Because of WPIAL realignment in all sports, the Vikings will be taking on some new section opponents this season.
Here’s a look at Hopewell’s section opponents in 2026 in Class 2A/Section 2: Hopewell, Ambridge, Beaver, Ellwood City, Mohawk, North Catholic, Riverside and South Side.
Beaver is coming into the season as the section favorite, but Hopewell will have the opportunity to compete and secure a spot in the playoffs.
As we wrapped up our conversation, I wanted to get Coach Gonzalez’s thoughts on the overall health of soccer in Hopewell and the growth since he got involved 12 years ago.
“I’ve been with this group of boys since we started like 12 years ago at the Hopewell youth level,” said Gonzalez. “That’s one of the reasons I’m so excited and passionate about being with this group of kids when I started with the high school 2 years ago. Seeing them grow and transition to this level of soccer is amazing and very rewarding. Also, the kids entering from our youth program, or in junior high or about to enter junior high, you can see with what we started 12 years ago. Now you’re starting to see the fruits of our labor.”
“Good soccer is going to be around in Hopewell for a long time thanks to the work that a lot of volunteers have put in. Aside from what we have at the high school level, the freshman class coming in is pretty strong. Between Dylan (Ankrom), Aaden (Gonzalez), Kaleb (Gonzalez), Aziah (Bradford), Josh (Liptak) and Elijah (Rodriguez), you can see the talent that’s already here and what’s coming. Right now, they’re young and raw but by the end of the season, I think you’ll see how much they’re going to be able to contribute to us in the future. It’s super, super humbling and amazing to see how these kids and how much this sport has grown in the area. Around here, football is king so to see that soccer is becoming, not only the boys but the girls too, a very popular sport is very gratifying to me. I’m a very optimistic person, so I don’t think I ever had any doubt that it could get this big.”
