Yelin Mao is a new freshman from China. He recently scored his first goal in the Sept. 29 game against the Faith Christian Lions and won his first soccer section championship title.
Q: What city did you come from, and how is it different from Sacramento?
A: Loudi, China. It’s a small city in China. The school is different and bigger.
Q: What school did you attend?
A: I went to Loudi No.3 Middle School. It’s one of 100 schools in my area.
Q: Do you like SCDS?
A: I really like the students and the environment, and the teachers are great.
Q: Why did you come to America?
A: Because I want to go to a good university and my cousin lives in America.
Q: How many siblings do you have?
A: I just have one, an older sister (24). She lives in Canada.
Q: What do you think of the food here?
A: I think the American food is too sweet for me. I only like Chinese food.
Q: What do you do in your free time?
A: I like to read books and play computer games. I play League of Legends. I am a Gold 3 player (one of the highest levels).
Q: What’s your favorite book?
A: It’s called “The Three Kingdoms.” It’s about the end of the Han Dynasty, when they are about to be attacked by three countries.
Q: What’s different about America?
A: My family is different, and, for example, one class in China has too many students.
Q: What’s your host family like?
A: I really like (senior) Akilan (Murugesan) and his mom. They are very careful of me.
Q: Do you enjoy playing on the soccer team?
A: I like how I can play soccer. I didn’t play (on a team) in China; I just played (in China) for fun. I would sometimes play with my friends.
Q: What was it like to score for the first time?
A:I was surprised because I never thought that I would score because I’m not very fast. I thought I couldn’t play up front, but Coach (Matt Vargo) let me.
Q: How did you feel after scoring?
A: I felt like it was impossible for me to score. I was excited. I felt very good.
Q: Did you tell your parents in China right away?
A: Of course, I texted them. They said the other team must be so bad for me to score!
Q: How did it feel to win a championship title?
A: I felt very excited at that time, because my cousin Brooklin also won a champion when he was on the soccer team. I think I am very lucky to get a championship in my freshman year. I hope that we’ll win more championships in the future.
—By Ben Miner
