“The season isn’tdetermined by the first game.” 

These words,spoken by junior right midfielder Jonathan Loeser, summarized both the startand the hope for the success of the varsity boys’ soccer team’s season.

The boys haveovercome tough games and circumstances to post an impressive 11-3 record sofar.

On Oct. 7, theCardinals bulldozed Burton 6-0. Though the score was 2-0 at halftime, the boysbroke open the game in the second half after some strategic changes in thelineup. The team adjusted their style in order to be more competitive on thefield against their opponent.

OnOct. 2, the Lowell boys defeated Lincoln 2-1. “It was very exciting, anddefinitely the best game this season because we played together, passed well,used defense and played solidly,” junior forward Safa Mannah said. Both Mannahand sophomore right defender Julian Enis each scored a goal for the Cardinals.

On Sept. 30, theCardinals took on a tough Balboa team, trailing the Buccaneers 2-0 athalf-time. This was the Cardinals’ most dramatic game, featuring fans beingkicked out of the stadium. However, the determined boys came back with a goalfrom Contreras and two goals from junior center midfielder and captain AnthonyClay, including one in the last minute of the game.

On Sept. 25, theboys crushed Galileo 4-1. According to Mannah, “the defense was a little shakybut the offense got the job done.” The turning point occurred when sophomoreright forward Leo Harrington pushed through the Lions’ defense and scored themoral-crushing third goal.

On Sept. 23, theteam slaughtered Washington 8-0. With the help of successful passes and adifferent way of playing on the field, the boys counted this as an easyvictory.The style was changedfrom always passing to the forwards, to passing the ball all the way through.However, despite the score line, the Eagles were a good team, and offered achallenge on the field.

On Sept. 18, theCardinals pounced on Marshall, with a 7-2 win. “We could improve on ourdefensive organization, passing through the midfield and finishing up top,”Mannah said.

Other than theteam being a dominant force on the field as shown by their season scores, theboys are pushing that extra inch to perfection. However, flaws this yearinclude unsuccessful practices and complaints from the team members. Everyplayer on the soccer team wrote a letter to the head coach Ernst Feibusch andassistant coach Eugene Vrana, asking for more meaningful practices, “because wewant to work harder,” senior right forward Jose Contreras said.

The Cardinals havea list of things to work on this year. According to senior goalie Nathan Gadye,"players for different club teams have different styles, so when theycome, they try to make the different styles of soccer work together,” Gadyesaid. “It doesn’t always work perfectly, which is why we have to play thesimple soccer that we do," Gadye said.

Gadye emphasizedthe importance of practicing basic soccer skills and how they are necessary forintegrating new players that come onto the team and old ones that graduate.However, Gadye noted that even though soccer “is not always the most enjoyable,I like playing for the school and I think that we will have a very successfulyear.” This positive attitude of the team aids them in continuing to succeedthis season.

Even though theboys are on a roll in their regular season games, they still have high goalsfor themselves. Mannah explained that compared to last year, there are more newplayers on defense this year. The boys need to work on playing as a team andbuild a stronger defensive force. This is due to the “lack of experience, andthat three out of four sophomores are freshmen on the team,” Mannah said.

Contreras addsthat despite being a senior, he still remembers his freshman year, when theteam lost to Mission 1-0 in the championships. “I feel I need to win thechampionship,” he said.

Come support the Cardinals at 3:45 p.m.on Oct 21. at Crocker Amazon against June Jordan.