LJ b soccer: Update

Viking defender Will Curtis (leaping in black

uniform) contests for ball in 4-0 loss at

Point Loma Jan. 29. (Photos by Ed Piper)

Continuity is the name of the game if you're going to build consistency in a program.

Look at La Jolla's boys soccer team. There is plenty of talent: The super sophs, Daniel Estrella and Lukas Keeling, are two of only four Vikings who have scored a goal this season.

James Penner, another offense-enhanced player, has been out quite a bit thus far, first with club team obligations, then shortly after with injuries.

On the other side of the ball, on defense, La Jolla also has plenty of juice. It's not for lack of talent.

By the way, Lukas had a hat trick (three goals) within five minutes at the start of LJHS's game against Mount Miguel to close out pool play in the Coronado Invitational in December. Coach Marco Gonzales pulled him out of the game immediately, to give others a chance at some of the scoring opportunities.

The Vikings played two Open Division teams in their first two games in the Coronado tournament, Hilltop and Poway. They played them close. The games were 2-1 and the like. I know that soccer doesn't have high scores like basketball, where you can just flip the ball up and it might go in. But these were well-played games.

I think, one, the Vikings brought talent, and two, they wanted to play well for Gonzales, their new coach.

Forward Daniel Estrella speeds ball toward attacking zone

with agile ball skills versus the Pointers.

Now, with Gonzales having to shepherd the JV's in place of another coach, varsity assistant Victor Zendejas has been piloting the varsity during the last several games. The players respond to him, they respect him, and he is vocal in a positive way on the sidelines during games, shouting encouragement as well as technical advice.

That's part of the rub: Zendejas, following Gonzales, through no fault of their own or the players', following last year's one-year coach and gone, following two coaches that preceded them in the couple of years before that. There hasn't been one coach over a period years since I started covering the team almost a decade ago.

The kids are all right. They just need continuity, which is my original statement. You see Estrella, Ole (pronounced like the Spanish "Ole" at bullfights) Cassidy, an import from Norway, Keeling, goalkeepers Alexei Sebald and Eric Vela, and the others respond well to their coaches. Many or most of these players have played youth soccer and club soccer. They're at a relatively high level of proficiency in ball skills, knowledge of strategy, and soccer I.Q., which is in vogue language these days.

All you need to add is water, and they grow. The water is having the same coach more than one year in a row. I hope Gonzales and Zendejas can return next year. It would be so good for the program. Zendejas, a fiery pepperpot, older than Gonzales who can act as a kind of colleague and mentor, joined the varsity coaching staff after the season began.

I see La Jolla playing other teams, who have a comparable level of talent. They are competitive. With the same structure in place over a period of time, the cream will continue rising to the top. I'm not saying the Vikings will be in the Open Division playoffs next year if Gonzales and Zendejas return. But it will be a move in the right direction.

By the way, it's a pleasure to cover the present La Jolla program, writing and taking photographs. The players use appropriate language, are respectful, and accept the leadership of the coaches. It's good to see these future leaders in our society headed in the right direction. Without this, what would be the point of high school sports--to prepare players for college, then for the pros? I don't think so. As a high school teacher, I am big on cultivating the whole person--student, athlete, and citizen. Citizen-athlete. How's that for a term?


Copyright 2015 Ed Piper