Four area players among top 18 in Norcal, will play in
Regionals
Making the cut for the Northern California state soccer team was only the first step for Gilroy’s Alfonso Motagalvan and Everardo Diaz de Leon and Morgan Hill’s Garrett Frechette and Anthony Avalos.
After practicing on weekends with the Olympic Developmental team and getting chosen to play in the Friendship Cup in Oregon, all four area players took the next step when they were among only 18 players selected to return to Oregon for the NIKE Regional Cup.
“Now, it’s the best against the best,” Coach Brian Hall said. “It’s exciting for them and for Gilroy and for Morgan Hill … It takes a lot of dedication and effort and focus on their part. Now, the biggest challenge is once you get to the top, how do you stay on top?”
First, the local kickers made a pool of 22 players to practice with the Northern California team. During those practices, the top 18 players were chosen for a tournament in Oregon. After that, another 18 players were selected to play in the NIKE Cup for a chance to get picked for the Western Regional team.
“I never thought this would be happening. It’s so exciting,” Frechette said. “To come this far after this much hard work is exciting and to not stop makes it that much more. Now I just want to get up there and hopefully go all the way.”
Motagalvan, Diaz de Leon and Frechette will play with the ’87s (17-unders), while Avalos will play for the ’88s (16-unders). From there, they can be chosen for the Western Regional team.
“It’s hard. Everyone out there is good and going hard,” Diaz de Leon said. “It’s very competitive. It’s hard going against teams that are just as good as you or even better than you.”
The players had to call into a voice mail machine and see if their names were read off the list. Motagalvan, Diaz de Leon, Frechette, and Avalos were all on that elite list.
“My family was all there. Brian was there. It was nice to share it with my family,” said Motagalvan, who had his support group by his side when he called in to see if he made the next cut. “It’s pretty cool. As a first-year player, to forgo over other players who have been there before is pretty big.”
Motagalvan, however, was not expecting to move on. When he went to Oregon for the first tournament, the coaches gave the room keys to the players with their names on them. On Motagalvan’s key, another player’s name was crossed off and his was replaced with it.
“I felt like I wasn’t supposed to be there. The first game I wasn’t expecting to play at all. I came off the bench … The assistant coach said I turned the game around for us,” Motagalvan said. “The next game I started versus Oregon. I played one full game and I started. I played a lot more than I expected.”
The Gilroy High product, who was a captain for the CCS Finalists of last season, scored one goal and had an assist in his team’s game against Oregon. Now, he’s hoping to make a stronger impression and make the next jump.
Motagalvan does conditioning with a teammate at Gilroy High School, practices and plays with his Y-League elite team, and then practices with the Norcal team on weekends all over the state.
Frechette, a varsity player for Live Oak High, plays with Motagalvan in Y-League, but is on the younger age division for the Northern California team, which has double-day practices every weekend in Marin.
“I’m learning something new every practice,” said Frechette, whose squad took second place in Oregon. “It gives you a chance to show the other coaches what you have. There were regional and college coaches watching you play.”
Avalos, also on the Live Oak High team, plays on a different Y-League elite team to keep in game shape and also practices with the Northern California team. He is the only returning player of the foursome in the Olympic Developmental field.
Diaz de Leon, a Gilroy High varsity kicker, was on a Y-League team, but had to quit because of “personal reasons” so he trains and conditions on his own before practicing on the weekends with the Norcal team.
“Now I do a lot of training by myself to try to keep up with the rest of the guys who are playing on club teams,” Diaz de Leon said. “But I still managed to move on and make it.”
Each player is doing whatever it takes to give them a competitive edge for when they head to Oregon. If they make the Western Regional team, they will get a chance to not only play against the best players in the nation but also showcase their talents for even more college coaches.
