The boys’ varsity soccer team has an 8-3-2 record.
Of their 48 goals, 33 were scored by sophomores: B.J. Askew (17), Theo Kaufman (9), Jayce McCain (4), Steven Wang (2) and Andrew Rossell (1).
According to McCain, practices have been going well, but attendance is sometimes low due to homework or tests.
McCain said their best half-game was against Encina High School, a 4-4 tie, on Sept. 2. The Cavs scored all four goals within the first half.
“They are the best team we’ve played all year, and for us to score four goals on them is pretty cool,” McCain said.
Encina has a record of 11-6-3, and is in Div. VI.
Coach Matt Vargo said that the best half-game was either the first half against Faith Christian High School or the second half against Forest Lake Christian School.
“I just thought we really shared the ball and possessed it as a team and finished our chances,” Vargo said regarding the Faith Christian game.
The Cavs defeated Faith Christian, 8-1, on Sept. 29 and Forest Lake, 3-0, on Sept. 10.
McCain said that the best full game was the 2-0 victory against Buckingham Charter Magnet High School on Oct. 2.
“We started out really slow, but in the second half we started to play way better with a lot of energy,” McCain said.
During the first half against Buckingham, the Cavs were unable to score. Due to two penalty kicks scored by Askew and Kaufman in the second half, they pulled out a 2-0 victory.
Junior Adam Dean also said it was a good game.
“In the second half we really manned up and started winning the 50-50 balls in the air and on the ground,” Dean said.
A 50-50 ball is a loose ball, or a badly placed pass, that is equally close to players from both teams.
Vargo and senior captain Brad Petchauer said the best full game was against Forest Lake.
“They’re an old Country Day rival that we usually have a lot of trouble against, but we were able to shut them out and win handily,” Petchauer said.
The first goal was scored by freshman Nate Jakobs.
“We went into the game expecting a bitter match because of a history of rivalry that we have with them,” Jakobs said.
“We played very well, keeping possession of the ball throughout most of the game. We had lots of shots, especially in the first half.”
During the second half, Askew scored two goals with assists from Kaufman and senior Diego Perochena.
“To go up on their field and shut them out was good,” Vargo said.
Vargo said that the season has been going well.
“We’re a younger team than we have been in the past years, but I’ve been pleasantly surprised with our progress,” Vargo said.
The team has only three seniors, compared to last year’s eight.
“The lack of seniors makes a huge difference,” Petchauer said.
At this time last year, the team had a record of 13-1-1.
“We continue to improve every game,” Dean said. “We really need to work on our touches and winning the ball in the air if we want to go far in the section playoffs.”
Vargo said the two players that have stood out are Askew and McCain.
“(Askew) is averaging two goals a game and (McCain) dominates any part of the field I put him on,” Vargo said.
Assistant coach Jason Allen said the team should play up to their good opponents and not teams that they should already be able to beat.
Results of the Oct. 23 Homecoming game against Buckingham were unavailable at press time.
—By Ulises Barajas
This update does not include games after Thursday, Oct. 22, as it was previously published in the print edition on Oct. 27.
