The 2022-23 season was a dominant one for the boys and girls soccer teams. At the end of the season, the boys had a 10-8-4 record and a slightly negative goal differential of 34 goals for and 36 against.

Once making the playoffs, the boys beat their first two opponents (Cypress Lake and South Fort Myers) in a clean 3-0 victory. In the district finals, the boy Seahawks unfortunately lost against the top ranked Mariner 3-0.

The girls played exceptionally well on the field, finishing with a 12-7 record. They had a +51 goal differential with 79 goals for and 28 against. In the first round of the playoffs, the girls won against South Fort Myers 8-0.

The girls put up a fight in the second round but couldn’t manage to outbeat North Fort Myers, losing 3-1.

Going into this season, both teams are looking brighter than ever. With the boys acquiring a new coach, Bruno Franco. The girls were looking to make their mark again in the regular season with the intention of making a deep run in the playoffs.

With many key seniors leaving on both teams, the remaining players had to adapt to a new environment along with welcoming new players to the team. In the offseason, seniors Cameron Fallacara and Mikala Allen were named captains for the girls team and given the job of guiding the rookies for the season.

“We’ve been helping to mentor the younger players by constantly communicating with them on and off the field and telling our own personal experiences,” said Fallacara. “We’re working on building up their confidence to excel in a new environment.”

Seniors Henry Wood and Christian Hernandez were named captains for the boys team. They were tasked with keeping team spirit high while also performing well on the field.

“I just try to keep their confidence up and make sure everyone stays with a winning mentality,” Wood explained.

With a new coach behind the bench, one’s game can and will be drastically affected. According to junior Alex Murillo, Franco brought many changes to the team, especially when it came to whom played what position.

“As a team we are definitely more offensive; we score more goals and I think that we are doing better this year,” Murillo stated. “Last year I was playing defense, but now I am playing more on the offensive side.”

Wood also noticed the change, stating, “Bruno has instilled a simple style of play where we move the ball and play together as a unit. I think it’s great, he’s an outstanding coach and we are all very happy with him.” 

“This year I’ve taken more of a defensive role at central defensive midfielder. Our attack hasn’t skipped a beat though as Adel Zammar and Christian Hernandez are both having great seasons.”

During the preseason, both teams played well. Unfortunately, Allen sustained an ankle injury and took some time to recover. Allen stated that while she might have been injured, her spirits were still high.

“Coming off an ankle injury from preseason games, I am looking forward to giving this season my all and bringing energy onto the field,” Allen explained. “My coach has reassured me that I’m still the athlete I was before the injury and encourages me to maintain a positive attitude throughout the comeback process.”

Fallacara explained that she has many goals in mind for the team and for herself. “I would say my goal for the team this year is to continue to improve on the field and beat our record from last year,” said Fallacara. “I also want to continue to grow a healthy team culture for the future.”

“Personally I am hoping to score and assist more than I did last season. I am also hoping to be recognized for my hard work in the local area.”

Going into the season, the teams came out hot with the boys winning 2-1 against Oasis High and the girls walking over Port Charlotte with a 9-0 victory. In the next few games, the girls were pure domination, tallying 11 goals for and two goals against. The boys however, were unable to pot a goal, losing 2-0 against Canterbury and 1-0 versus Gulf Coast.

After losing two in a row, Murillo suggested that the team could work on bringing consistent play to every game. “Sometimes we played the ball really well but sometimes we played badly, I guess we are a little inconsistent but with really good moments,” Murillo explained. “More practice and other players talking more to keep others accountable, that way everyones head stays in the game.”

After some practice, the teams set back out for some more matches. In this segment, the boys played dominant and the girls had fallen behind slightly. Fallacara explained that even though her team started to have a negative record, the team still played extremely well.

“Our record isn’t the greatest right now and is not reflecting how we have been playing,” Fallacara said. “We hope to improve our overall aggressiveness on the field and be more clinical in front of the goal.”

With that motivation, the girls team came back and reversed the shutout they had received the game previous and shot the ball eight times in the net in an 8-0 win.

As of the sixth of December, the boys team is rocking a 5-3-1 record with 19 goals for and 13 against. The girls are sitting at an even record of 5-5, with 33 goals for and 22 against.

Allen stated that the team has been working on setting up a strong opening to their matches. “Increasing our focus from the start of the game so we can set a tone and display dominance from the very start which will hopefully give us the results we are looking for,” Allen explained.

Along with opening improvement, Fallacara added that the team is also working on improving their possession and ball-handling. “We also like to limit the amount of touches each player has on the ball to help increase our movement and speed of play, this really helps to get realistic practice,” said Fallacara.

Given the change to behind the bench, the boys team has played to their full ability and are having themselves a good season. “Our coach is really good this year; He listens to us and tries his best to accommodate us, but also does what is best for the team,” Murillo explained.

Wood knows that if the team keeps playing the way they are, they will have an extremely good record and playoff standing. “If we find a good rhythm, I believe we can make it pretty far in the playoffs,” said Wood. “I’m very proud of all of them [his teammates]. I know each and everyone of them leave it all on the field.”