Bring out the cleats, shin guards, goals, and soccer balls: spring soccer kicked off with tryouts Monday through Wednesday, for boys and girls, on January 14-17.

On the first day of boys tryouts, players warmed up in chilly weather, broke into small groups, and alternated between three stations focused on separate skills. One group practiced a possession skill, another worked on attacking on the goal, and the third focused on defensive work. Day one tryouts ended with a scrimmage to put the players’ skills to the test. The following day of tryouts, coaches set up a full field scrimmage, observing the players in specific positions to help make decisions about who would make the team, a decision revealed on Thursday, January 17.  

“At tryouts and throughout the week, there was a lot of potential from some of the new guys. We have a pretty strong senior court this year, but a lot of the new kids trying out looked really good. As a team, we looked good, we have about six or seven seniors coming back on the team, and our team goal is to win region,” senior Ben Schick said.

The girls had slightly different procedures regarding tryouts. On their first day, the players began with five versus five scrimmages to warm up. They then moved on to full field (11 versus 11) to determine how each player molded into different positions. Day two of tryouts took the players’ technical aspects into consideration, where coaches observed the player’s technique and touch with the ball. Varsity girls Head Coach Buckles revealed the teams on Thursday, January 17, opening the official roster for 2019’s Varsity and Junior Varsity Girls soccer team. Both teams will begin the season with immense goals, hoping to make this season their best yet.

“The girls worked hard this round of tryouts, and we all have big goals for this season. We’re ready to make this season memorable and make it count,” Buckles said.