Taking advantage of the new league

Two years ago at the Fall Sports Banquet, James Marrone gave a little speech before he handed out the season’s awards. He didn’t look at the crowd yet, but instead gazed in awe at the athletic banners hanging in the gymnasium; he had the microphone in his hand, yet he wasn’t talking to the onlookers. Instead, he seemed to be almost talking to himself. At the end of his summary of the season, the soccer coach said, “It’s time for us to get another banner in here.”

On Tuesday Oct. 28, that’s exactly what they did.

The team has been very successful in the past. Four to five years ago were good times for the program because the team won several league championships in a row. But times changed over the years and the boys couldn’t keep up anymore. “Because we had great success four years ago, it was a hard fall,” Marrone said. But the team got its championship back this year.

But this wasn’t supposed to be the year.

“We won only one game last year,” Marrone said. “I mean, I knew we had the ability to do well, but not this well.” He said the team needed this year to get the program back on its feet again and to help the seniors forget about last year’s record.

The league game against Chavez was a nail-biter and unlike any other game in the season. The bleachers were packed, the opposing crowds were roaring back and forth, elbows were thrown, and eyes were cut. The most thrilling of all: not a single point was scored in the varsity match. Both teams battled and never gave up, but Stagg had the most league points so the championship was given to them.

This win and persistence is due to the team’s unusual approach to the season. Marrone said that he is normally a control-freak, but this year he let his two co-captains run the team. “There are times in games where they look unstoppable,” he said. “So I let them take charge.”

One of them, senior Jose Chavez, has played for Stagg all four years while also playing for several off-season teams. “We had some lazy moments during the season,” he said. “Sometimes it was during practice and other times it was during games. We just had to get past it.” The midfielder also said that it was frustrating because the team was used to losing constantly, but they just had to stay positive and learn.

For those who are not familiar with the soccer team, it’s a very close group of friends but more of a family. Each member is born with a new name upon entrance to the home and they all call each other “brothers.” In fact, most of the team is related; according to Marrone, the soccer team has had more siblings on varsity and junior varsity than ever before, which helps with the team chemistry. This is the first thing the team masters before moving on to the next skill set. “You can do what you want to win with talent,” Marrone said. “But you need a little bit more than that. We incorporated family and gave the players pride in being a king.”

Marrone knew at some point the team would get a banner, he just didn’t expect it this year. “They didn’t want to let their brothers down,” he said. “This is the greatest group of young men to work with, and now they have something to latch on to.”