With the UC High Boys Soccer Team being allowed to play in the orange (moderate) tier, the team is excited for the potential to have a season this year, and hopes to continue their momentum toward success.

   The California Interscholastic Federation [CIF] released a chart organizing team sports based on their risk for COVID-19 spread, and this is being used to determine when certain sports may return to competition. Boys Soccer is allowed in the Orange moderate tier (cifsd.org).

   UC High Head Coach Chris Tolles said, “I am optimistic and hopeful CIF will do everything in their power to try and have a season. If that means shortening the season to just League games and playoffs or just League games, it would at least be something. Seniors have waited four years and put in hours of hard work to play in their final year of high school and it would be devastating not to try and have a season.”

   On the prospect of the season, Tolles said, “We have a very strong team returning this year. Led by a strong senior class and college hopefuls Jack Amos and Joe Totoris, the team has the senior leadership in place to have a very successful season. We have moved from the Eastern League to the more difficult Western League and look to continue our League-winning ways. There is also a strong chance the team will play in the Open Division playoffs for the first time ever. The future is bright for UC Boys Soccer and fingers crossed they get a chance to show that this season.”

   Last year, the team finished the season with an overall record of 9-8-7, and a 5-1-2 record in League en route to the League Championship for the third consecutive year, according to a high school sports statistics website (maxpreps.com).

   Winger and Midfielder Senior Jack Amos said, “Last year, the team had great success. Although it was a slow start at the beginning of the season, we knew that we were playing well against tough preseason opponents. By the time our League games got around, our good play turned into winning results.”

   Forward Senior Matteo Ceresoli spoke to his hopes for a season. “I am most looking forward to being able to play in the top division. In past years, the squads have fought hard to reach, and to have the chance stripped from us would be horrible,” he said.

   The team also had an exciting run in the Division 1 playoffs. “As the eighth seed in the playoffs, we made it all the way to the semifinals, beating the first seed, before losing to the eventual champions Rancho Bernado in a penalty shootout,” said Tolles. 

   The playoff is a fond memory for many of the athletes as well. “It was a battle to the end, but our keeper was our needed hero in the penalty shootout. When my teammate scored the penalty to secure the wild upset, the whole team was euphoric, running and jumping around like crazy. It’s just one of those moments that I’ll always cherish,” said Amos. 

   Amos said, “I’m most looking forward to getting the chance to play with my fellow senior teammates for one last ride, and being able to represent my high school doing the sport I love for the last time.”

   “The best part of coaching is the bond you form with your players and team. Especially at the high school level this relationship is molded over four years, and it is extremely special to watch these young men grow from their freshman to senior year. I try and keep in contact with many of my players after they move on to college. The goal for me is not how many games we can win, but making their high school soccer experience a special one that they can look back on years from now and say it was an enjoyable one,” said Tolles.