The Anzar High boys soccer team, having never qualified for the Central Coast Section playoffs, came painstakingly close last season. They went 6-2-2 in the Coastal Athletic League and finished in second place to Pacific Grove (8-1-1).
And despite the majority of the roster being freshmen this season - six of the 18 members, in fact - new coach Carlos Zepeda feels his team should do just fine in the CAL.
"I think we should be able to win most of our games," said Zepeda, who takes over for Ruben Fuentes. "We have some good freshmen, some good seniors, and all the players are in good condition."
Pacific Grove should be right there again to say otherwise, but Anzar's Alexis Sicairos, who was second on the team last season in goals scored with 11, will look to lead the Hawks to their first-ever CCS bid.
Midfielder Raul Vega, and defenders Glen Alameda and David Bellone also return from last year's team.
The Hawks, which have lost to Stevenson (4-0) and Gonzales (3-1) already in the preseason, will open CAL play on Wednesday at home to Calvary Christian.
Zepeda noted two areas in need of improvement before the season is through, most notably finishing on offense and pressuring on defense.
"We need to get better at pressuring the other team and we need to score more goals," he said. "But we are getting better at it."
Andrew Matheson Andrew Matheson is a sports writer for South Valley Newspapers. He can be reached at 831-637-5566 ext. 334 or at amatheson@svnewspapers.com.
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