After several months of preparation, the soccer team tryouts were held this past week to determine the make-up of the JV and Varsity teams for the year.
“We’re projected to have a pretty good team at all 3 levels this year,” Head Boys Soccer Coach Joel Garcia said.
Soccer is one of the most competitive programs at Langham, accepting only 66 students distributed among 3 teams.
“That’s probably one of the toughest days for me as a coach,” Garcia said.
Several students already enrolled in the soccer class were removed, while 3 of the team’s returning players failed to make the cut.
“Everything’s cutthroat,” Garcia said. “It’s either you or the guy next to you, and every day they have a chance to compete.”
Throughout the semester, the class held various competitions to assess the progression of each student.
“It’s not just based on ‘you were good one day’,” Garcia said. “By the time team tryouts roll around, we’ve seen them for 3 months, and it’s a little bit easier to make a decision from there.”
Last year, the varsity team made the playoffs, placing 2nd at District; they placed 7th the year before.
“The group I inherited had a sort of chip on their shoulder,” Garcia said. “They had something to prove. Motivating them was not difficult. They had that drive about them that whole time. My biggest thing was making sure we were organized; that we had the right mindset; that we were tough to beat.”
This year, though, the team is shooting for first.
“It’s gonna be the process,” Garcia said. “You can’t chase the result because that’s backwards thinking.”
While finding good players is an important part of tryouts, overall team vision is of paramount importance to the coaching staff.
“It’s not just the starters that matter; it’s our team,” Garcia said. “If we can focus on the last guy on the team, and we know he is ready to contribute, then we’re going to have a good season.”
That ethic is largely informed by the team’s philosophy: next-man up. Whenever a player is out, their backups are always expected to take the lead.
“The second string is just waiting for their chance, waiting for their moment,” Garcia said. “It’s our job as coaches to give them that moment and give them the encouragement and sense of trust we have in them.”
According to Garcia, that contributes to a sense of well-roundedness that makes the “difference between winning a district championship and winning 2nd all the way through 8th.”
The season will kick off with a series of scrimmages as the team’s first major practice.
“As we slowly go into tournament games, it’ll be more of ‘who did well in the scrimmages? Who’s doing well in practice? Who’s trying to contribute more?’,” Garcia said. “But at the same time, too, I throw some of those kids in where I see where they might play during the season, so they’re still fighting for their starting lineup.”
