Boys’ soccer team wins conference
Teamwork and talent lead to successful season
Park celebrates after junior Randy Mayele scores in the section semifinal against Kennedy Oct. 13. They won the game 2-1 and went on to play Wayzata in the section final Oct. 16.
October 28, 2018
The boys’ soccer team’s conference champion title and success this season was earned through hard work and team players.
According to head coach Chato Alvarado, its biggest advantage this year was how much talent the team had.
“If one of the players gets injured or is not having a good game, I can substitute them and the team still can maintain a good level of soccer out on the field,” Alvarado said.
The team has gotten better at working together to score points as they learned each other’s strengths and weaknesses, according to Alvarado.
“The boys are learning to play with each other more,” Alvarado said. “The more games we play, the better they know how to play with each other.”
According to senior Ben Klepfer, the reason the team won the conference championship is because they knew what they were capable of and continued to work hard throughout the season.
“Our biggest skill is our ability to work together as a team and keep possession of the ball and not get too out of our comfort zone — just continue to play our game and be patient,” said Klepfer.
According to senior David Benjamin, the team played every game like it was their last, so they would always try their best.
“We always have the mentality that every single game we play was going to be a section game, so if we lost once we’re out,” said Benjamin.
This championship title has boosted the team’s confidence going into sections, according to Klepfer. He said the soccer team has beaten so many opponents this season and he knows they can compete against any team they come up against.
“Just knowing that we can beat any team that we’ve come up against plays a big factor in boosting our confidence. We shouldn’t be scared of anybody that we play,” Klepfer said. “We have another top four team in the state in our section, but we know that we can play with anyone in the state and we have to carry that confidence in every game.”
The boys’ soccer team ended the conference with a winning record of 12-1-1 and the title of conference champions, according to Mn Soccer Hub.
