Story by: Angel Martinez, Co-Editor-In-Chief
Photo by: Angel Martinez
After having a shaky start to the season, the Chargers men’s soccer team has been earning crucial results at the most important point of the season.
The Chargers have put together an amazing October after beating the Santa Ana Dons 3-0 on Oct. 13. The Dons entered the game atop the Orange Empire Conference standings.
The victory marked a change in the team as they had struggled to establish consistency, but now they are a contender for the Orange Empire Conference championship.
The Chargers followed with another 3-0 shutout over Santiago Canyon College on Oct. 16 before they came back home, taking a 2-1 victory over Saddleback College on Oct. 20. Cypress improved to 7-5-1 overall and 5-2 in conference play.
Cypress men’s soccer player Gavin Lee credited the team’s recent success to improved chemistry and team effort.
“The last three games were definitely very good for our confidence and our overall chemistry as a team,” Lee said. “We fought for each other and it really had a positive impact on our second half of the season.”
The next part of the season will be critical as they look to improve their position in the standings and become the first team in Cypress history to win the conference title.
Despite narrow losses to teams like Fullerton College and Irvine Valley College, the Chargers have demonstrated they can earn important victories and work cohesively on defense. The team’s improvement has gone beyond the scoreboard.
“The biggest difference in our team’s performances has really been the fact that we trust each other a lot more now,” Lee said. “I feel like in the beginning it was very separated and we didn’t function as a team, but now we have really been clicking together and putting trust in ourselves.”
The victory over Santa Ana stands out as one of the team’s biggest results as the Dons were among the programs receiving statewide recognition earlier in October.
As the second round of the conference play begins, Cypress will face several familiar opponents, including teams responsible for losses earlier in the season. The Chargers will travel to Golden West on Oct. 23 before hosting Fullerton on Oct. 27 and visiting Orange Coast on Oct. 30.
November presents additional challenges, including a rematch against Santa Ana on Nov. 6 and the season finale at Saddleback on Nov. 13.
Despite recent success, Lee emphasized the importance of maintaining the right mentality and not underestimating their opponents during the final stretch of the season.
“It has been shown that any team could win the game on any given day,” Lee said. “Now it will all be about our mentality going into the rest of the games.”
As the conference race continues, Cypress will look to build on its recent results and maintain consistency throughout the remainder of the regular season.
For more information on the Chargers men’s soccer team, visit cypresschargers.com or @cypsoccer on Instagram.
