The young man, dressed in blue, traverses the length of the field, following the soccer ball. The member of the opposite team kicks at his heels, trying to slow him down. Suddenly, the ball rolls in front of the Jesuit player who races ahead of his opponent and quickly heads towards the goal. Finally, he lifts his right leg, storing as much energy as possible before changing directions, kicking the ball into the upper right corner of the goal. The referee blows the whistle and the crowd screams “goal!”
The Jesuit soccer team kicked off their highly awaited season this past weekend with the Meinster tournament. The soccer program has been renowned for their stellar seasons in the past and this season appears to be no different. Jesuit returns quite a few notable senior varsity players like Griffin Scott ‘16, Pryor Miller ‘16, and Patrick Howell ‘16. The team is also strengthened by talented newcomers, including Mateo Means ‘17, Chase Burciaga ‘17, and Ethan Moore ‘17.
The team very excited as the season kicks off, Means commented, “Our team looks really good. I have no doubt this season will be a strong one.” His praises for the soccer team were echoed by his teammate Burciaga, who told The Roundup, “The team has gelled really well over the offseason and we have a lot of talent. So, I feel pretty confident in our chances against every team.”
The team started the season off hot, going undefeated in the Meinster tournament. Jesuit went 3-0 in the tournament, winning big games over Bishop Lynch, Sachse, and Flower Mound. Furthermore, thanks to stellar defense and strong goalie play by Luke Ostrander ‘17, Jesuit did not allow a goal in any of their first three games.
Jesuit began their season against Bishop Lynch, winning 2-0 with clutch goals by Johnny Balok ‘16 and Patrick Howell ‘16. Jesuit managed to dominate the ball as well during the game, shooting 11 shots in comparison to Bishop Lynch’s only 1. Then with a strong victory under their belt, Jesuit went into their next game against Sachse with momentum, playing very well and winning 1-0 thanks to a big goal from Moore in the 60th minute. Although they did not dominate the ball, Moore’s goal was enough to send them into the championship in a huge game against Flower Mound. Jesuit faced tremendous adversity in this match. Luckily, Ostrander was able to combat the strong Flower Mound offense and leave them silent the whole night, setting the stage for a goal from Miller in the 21st minute, which earned the Rangers a win in the season-opening invitational.
After their strong tournament performance, Jesuit soccer hopes to continue their dominance as the season progresses. Detailing the goals for the season, Head Coach Charlie Delong said, “Anytime we play, we want to win… But along with that, we want to get better.”
Make sure to congratulate the members of the soccer team on their big wins as they prepare for the Duncanville Tournament!
