First-year head coach Dave Silva has one word to describe the Central Community College Men’s Soccer team – young. Silva arrived in Columbus from in July following a seven-year high school coaching career in Florida. He also owned and operated a soccer academy that specialized in providing an affordable way for rural players, in particular, to experience tournament play in the region. Between the school and the academy, no doubt, Silva saw his share of veteran players. However, Silva has only four returning players on his CCC roster. On one hand, that presented a number of challenges, but it also provided a huge opportunity, and it paid off.
“I was able to find players, especially from our area,” said Silva. “A lot of our players are from Columbus, Grand Island and Schuyler so I’m very happy that I was able to find very good players and that they also represent our community.”
Two of the returning players are sophomores Jhareese Walker and Jose Orellana, who played at Columbus High School. Both Walker and Orellana will serve as team captains, and both should have had some good role models considering that more than 80 percent of the 2015 team members were sophomores. Silva says Walker and Orellana are both great players, great leaders and very athletic. Because of that, the pair will anchor Silva’s defense as mid-fielders.
“That’s a very important position in my system, because basically what they do is control the tempo of the game,” said Silva. “If they are able to obtain the ball as much as possible, we will control the flow of the game. Because of their speed, we can also pull counterattacks.”
One unique aspect among the newcomers is that three pairs of players were together in high school, and in one case, together at a previous junior college as well. Sophomores Juan Alvarado and Miguel Andrade were on the 2015 roster at Northeast Community College in Norfolk, where Alvarado scored four goals for the Hawks and earned ICCAC Honorable Mention honors. Prior to that, Alvarado and Andrade were teammates at Schuyler High School, a school that Silva is eager to build a lasting relationship with.
“Schuyler High has had a good program for the last three or four years and they have good players. I want to try to get those players to Central,” said Silva.
Next, a pair of freshmen from Grand Island Senior High School, Jose Flores and Mario Canela. Flores played in the 23rd Nebraska Shrine Classic in June and scored his team’s only goal. Silva is impressed with how Flores performs and describes him as a player that people like to watch because of what he can do.
“He may be able to take three or four players at once,” said Silva. “He’s one of those players I see moving up to [NCAA] D1 or D2 in the future.”
As for Canela, Flores referred him to Silva who hadn’t heard about him because he was not an all-state performer. Canela was injured during his senior season, but he made a return, and he has made a positive impression at CCC.
“He can play any position,” said Silva. “He is a good player with good skills and leadership.”
Finally, first-year players Mario Sandoval and Gilberto Evangelista made quite the long haul to play for the Raiders, having played together at Hood River High School in Oregon. According to Silva, the players drove 23 hours and the car they were in had no air conditioning. Silva brought Sandoval and Evangelista in for two reasons: they helped lead Hood River to back-to-back Oregon 5A state championships and their defensive skills.
“Going to back-to-back state championships requires a lot of leadership, a lot of concentration. I want our players to be surrounded by those type of players,” said Silva. “We have really good offensive players, but we were lacking on defense. They are going to solidify my defense.”
One other new member of the team that Silva mentions is Leonel Arias, who is described as extremely versatile and ambidextrous.
“He can play midfield, he can play forward. He shoots with both legs, right and left,” said Silva. “He’s well-spoken, does what he is supposed to do.”
In goal, the Raiders have three freshmen net minders, Carlos Dominguez, Adrian Ramos and David Pineda. Dominguez and Ramos will rotate as the starting goalkeepers, while Pineda will split time in goal and as a field player.
While it will take some time to see if the balance of veterans and new players along with a new coaching system will translate into victories, Silva says everything he has seen indicates that the Raiders are off to a great start.
“The chemistry has been perfect. They get along with each other,” said Silva. “Most of them are living here in housing here at Central, which helps too.”
The roster currently stands at 22 players, but Silva says that he is always looking for more players and he wants anyone who would like to play to be a walk-on. In fact, the coach says his team members are giving him a helping hand as they are talking to some of their teammates from high school to join the practice squad. The team appreciates the help, especially when it comes to not having enough players to conduct a proper scrimmage.
“I’m always open for walk-ons. They’re always welcome, any type of ability,” said Silva. “The good thing too is that they don’t lose eligibility being with us in practice. So maybe they want to come out for one year to see how it goes and maybe next year, they may want to try out for the varsity team.”