After a great season in 2022 with a 12-6-1 record, the boy’s soccer team is coming back in 2023 with a few new faces and a shot at the District Championship. After a heartbreaking loss in district semi-finals last year, the players are determined to win districts this year. 

“I feel like we have a lot of work to do; nothing is guaranteed,” Carlos Carvajal, head coach, said. “It doesn’t feel very similar to last year. Last year we won our first game. We are expecting to win our first game [this year] and hopefully our second game this year, so I feel confident that we have a good team that has grown. But at the same time, we know we need to work hard.”

With nine of the players on the team being seniors, they dominate the roster. The soon-to-be graduates have been vital to the team’s success, with 61 out of their 81 goals being scored by the seniors. However, it’s not just the seniors. Mekhi Gamboa, junior, is fourth on the team in goals and third on the team in points. 

“Seeing the team this year has been really good,” Gamboa said. “We are having a good season, and I hope to win districts with this team.”

Back in 2021, the U. City soccer team finished 8-15 with just 14 players listed on the roster. This year, the team is 13-3 with a roster of 28 players and no end in sight. 

“Watching the team evolve was cool,” Nate Salem, senior, said. “Watching us barely being able to field a team to be able to have a varsity and junior varsity team is nice to see. We have also become a winning team. My hopes for the season is that we create a legacy that will keep soccer alive in U. City and not have a year like my sophomore year where we barely had players.”

Captain Brady Klohr, senior, has been on the team since his freshman year. 

“My hope for this season is for our team to develop our teamwork,” Klohr said. “It’s been great to see the team develop. In my first and second year, we were a bit disorganized, but for the past two years we’ve come together, with this season’s record, we’re doing the best I’ve seen.”

The team will compete in the district tournament from Oct. 30 to Nov. 6.

“For the rest of the season,” starting right-back Joshua Grove, sophomore, said. “I just want the team to keep playing how we’ve been playing and see how far it takes us in districts.”