Boys’ soccer has faced many ups and downs this season, but the team has stayed motivated and focused on improving together.
After countless hours of practice, Barstow’s team won two games in their district championships. Even though the team did not win the final game, the collaborative effort and improvement demonstrates the strength of the team.
Boys’ soccer has now clinched a quarter and semi-final district win, thanks to senior captains Vikas Maganti (‘22) and Max Parr (‘22), the rest of the varsity team, and head coach Scott Huppe.
From the start, the team was inexperienced and young, as more than half of the players are underclassmen. However, there has been strong improvement. According to sophomore Tyler Mcneive (‘24), the new players “really learned Huppe’s system, how he wants us to play and keep the ball. We’ve just improved playing as a team.”
At the beginning of the season, the team played Bishop Miege High School, a larger school in Kansas outside of Barstow’s class and district. The game was an interesting, competitive start to the season, and Barstow faced a disappointing defeat to Miege. Since that game, however, they have learned from their mistakes and grown as a team.
“The team has been pretty good,” said Maganti (‘22). “We had a little bit of a learning curve at the beginning of the season…but we turned it around.”
The team then faced two losses during the Barstow invitational tournament. After this disheartening start to the season, the boys came back with five wins in a row, proving their hard work had paid off. The team finished the season with an 8-11 record before districts, won two games at districts, and lost district finals, ending their season.
Even though the team had only been playing together for less than four months, there was an immense amount of team chemistry, evident both on and off the field. “There’s a lot of good chemistry, especially with the new players,” said Parr (‘22).
The team has participated in various bonding activities off the field as well. For example, during the St. Louis tournament, the boys stayed up late and played video games together, as well as shared laughs at breakfast and on the bus. The boys also went to The Big Biscuit, which, according to freshman Carson Matula (‘25), “helped us with team bonding.”
The team environment was also beneficial in bridging the gap between lowerclassmen and upperclassmen players. Often, students will see midfielders Cale Wiliams (‘25) and Parr (‘22) walking around the halls together, a common mingling that occurs for most of the students on the team.
Scott Huppe is a meticulous coach with clearly set expectations and systematic goals for the team to accomplish. He tries to tie the team together, and he encourages communication during the game. This season’s team has struggled somewhat with learning Huppe’s ways. However, as they have grown closer and improved as a team, the method has come more naturally to them.
Coach Huppe’s soccer method has propelled the boys to win more and perform better on field. According to Team Manager Maddie Bauman (‘22), “Coach Huppe is often correcting mistakes they make, and the team is extremely receptive to his coaching.”
“They are a very coachable team,” added Bauman (‘22). “They never make the same mistake twice, even though half the team hasn’t played high school soccer until this year.”
As for actual gameplay, the boys try to always start out each game with the correct mindset, since according to Bauman, “It’s a mental game at this point.” Coach Huppe often gives concise advice to create the energy he wants to see on the field.
While the boys picked up a lot of wins recently, losses are inevitably a part of gameplay, evident in the district finals game. “Some losses just stick with you, and you can think about them all you want, but you have to just move on,” says Matula (‘25).
Each team member has a unique reason for joining the team as seen with Williams (‘25) whose brother, former captain Cayden Williams (‘20), “just loved Huppe as a coach, and that helped [motivate me to join].”
For McNeive (‘24), he has “played soccer my entire life and I’ve been waiting to play in highschool for a long time.” Parr (‘22) says that “I just wanted to play soccer, so I just joined for love of the game really.”
The end of the season has been especially hard for the seniors, and losing their final game at districts while in second overtime was a sore end to the exciting and fun season.
Parr (‘22), Maganti (‘22), and Amrit Sian (‘22) all expressed the same bittersweet feelings about the end of the season and the end of their highschool soccer career. However, they are all grateful that they were given the opportunity to have one more season before the end of highschool. The relationships forged will definitely progress and strengthen beyond soccer season.
The three seniors have been vital to the team’s success and in guiding the team on and off the field. Sian (‘22) offered some wisdom to young players on the team, saying “play every game like it’s your last game. If you don’t like the way you’re performing there’s more games, more conditioning and you’ll get better.”A
Parr (‘22) and Maganti (‘22), being team captains and starters every game, know exactly what the team lacks and excels in. Their responsibility to lead the team through their wins and losses has given them a lot of insight on how the team can improve, and where they are headed. However, Parr’s advice to the players was simple, “be assertive.”
The team’s motivations for joining the team, vast improvements, and encouraging team bond has led to an incredible journey through their season. If anything, their strength and willpower proves that underneath their victories lies an inspiring passion for soccer that everyone can learn from. Congratulations Boys Varsity Soccer on a phenomenal season.
