By Brian Argabright
Ten months ago, the Del Rio Queens soccer team was on the cusp of a district championship when school sports were shut down for the remainder of the school year due to COVID-19.
As the late Hall of Famer Yogi Berra once said, “It’s déjà vu all over again.”
The Queens were just beginning this season when the high school’s UIL programs were suspended out of precaution due to COVID-19. They had played a handful of scrimmages and were coming off a 13-1 thrashing of Eagle Pass C.C. Winn when play was stopped.
“Instead of the end of the season, it’s happening at the beginning this time,” Queens head soccer coach Wilber Rivas said.
Rivas has a relatively young team this year. He has only two seniors on the squad, so every match thus far has been a chance for him to evaluate his team and see what works and what doesn’t.
“We scrimmaged Reagan and lost 6-2. It felt good to score two goals because it showed we could play with the big teams. Then we lost 6-0 at San Angelo. That showed me we needed to work on quicker passes. Against Cornerstone, our touches were much better and we were a more balanced team. We only lost 1-0 and that one goal was off a simple mistake. We were pressing, our spacing was better and everyone was moving better and covering better. Seeing Cornerstone get frustrated showed me we were playing well,” Rivas said of his team’s scrimmages.
Now he won’t see his team in person for at least another week. He said he has sent the girls workouts they can do at home, such as planks and squats and short sprints to stay active, but he knows it’ll be a challenge to keep them ready to jump right back into action once the district gives the go-ahead to resume activities.
“I want to keep them active and let them challenge themselves. The coaches have designed a workout meant to meet certain goals and get them ready. They can do these at home and not have to go outside. It’ll work their core and their legs,” Rivas said. “We also want them to concentrate on their academics. They need to be ready for their upcoming exams.”
The biggest motivator for Rivas and the Queens is to finish what they started last season. Del Rio finished the truncated season in first, but they missed out on claiming a district championship because there was still a possibility they could lose or tie for the district crown with two matches left in the season.
At the time the 2020 season was suspended, and then canceled, the Queens had won eight matches in a row and were unbeaten in their last nine matches overall.
“Our motivation for working hard during this break is to get back on the field and get back what’s ours. These girls felt the district title should have been theirs,” Rivas said. “They know they’re good, but they can do better. As coaches, we have to keep them motivated and not let them get discouraged about what’s going on. We have to get them to keep working. Whether or not we get back on the field in time to finish this season, they’re going to be ready.”
While his team is young, Rivas said his core group of players keeps this team going and leads the way by example.
“Zoe Ortiz, our goal keeper … she’s the reason we were in first last season. Johanna Rodriguez and Jocelyn Martinez are my seniors and my captains. Cassandra Ochoa and Laurie Ignacio are leaders on defense, and Jadyn Casillas is terrific on the attack. We also gained Andrea Sauceda this season. She’s very talented and has played at several different positions,” Rivas said.
Rivas praised his team’s talent and academic acumen and said going through last season’s ups and down made them a better squad overall.
“Hopefully these next two weeks fly by and we can get back at it,” Rivas said.
