Playing for the Aztecs - Spring Season
Another Aztec shot - he got his hands on this one!
He's been working hard on strategy
and getting the ball where it needs to go.
Action Shot - Winter Season with the Tigers
One of my favorites! This was a save made playing with the Tigers.
After several years of dedication to his love of American Football, Justin decided to take a break and try his hand at the "Real Futbol". Hats off to my soccer stud! He has found a talent that I never dreamed he had! John was a goalie growing up and it looks as though Justin may follow very successfully in his footsteps.
I must admit that I love being a soccer mom. It's so much fun to go to the games and watch your kid play his heart out! Since Justin has taken on the job of goalie though, I think I've had no less than 47 heart attacks and I may have aged a few years while holding my breath as the other team comes tearing down the field ready to score. San Diego seems to be a place full of talented young athletes and youth sports are generally places where I find myself blown away by the competition. Soccer around here is generally pretty amazing to watch!
The first team Justin played on this year, the Tigers, was coached by a prior competitive player and all of the kids on the team had played before. They were tough to beat and Justin had to work hard to keep his spot as goalie! He's been a part of a very competitive (undefeated is the truth) football team for the past year, and while he had enjoyed the taste of victory, he had not experienced being in the hot seat. He didn't play quarterback, he didn't play receiver, and he didn't experience the pressure of being the kicker trying to get an extra point to win the game. Playing goalie brought some new experiences for him! He stopped plenty of shots, but he got scored on once or twice and had to learn how to pick his head up and get ready for the next one.
He had so much fun playing winter soccer that he went back for more in the spring season. This time, his team was a little more green (to put it mildly). They were rookies and they were just trying to figure out which way they were going for the first couple of games! Justin took plenty of shots on goal and he came out bloody once or twice! They lost every game and at about mid-season, his team started taking it out on him. He came home from practice one day feeling defeated because one of the other kids had said, "Maybe you could start making some saves!" I was sad to see my kid feeling down and out but happy to see him come back quickly when we talked about how many saves he did have and how his odds of success might improve a bit if maybe his defense would help him out.
His team must have worked it out because they came out for blood the next week! They played a team that I thought would beat them 25 - 0 (no kidding) and they wound up scoring two goals and losing by only three. By most counts, a butt whooping, but for this team, it was a major accomplishment! Justin was diving all over the place, he made some amazing saves, and he managed to learn how to get his team to work together. There were high fives being shared all around and after the game, I had two parents from the other team ask if I was his Mom. With a puffed up pride I said, "I sure am!" and they let me know that they thought he was a really good goalie. The only moment that topped that was when I heard the coach of the other team say to himself, "Dang. That kid's good!" It was such an amazing performance that I couldn't stop myself and I rushed the field at the end to tell him just how awesome he had played! The victory was made sweeter because it was his Tenth Birthday so it's a game we'll always remember.
Justin has won some games and he's now certainly lost some games. He's been down in the dirt with kids kicking hard at him and he's gotten back up to try again. He's had kids tell him it's his fault when it goes bad and he's also had them tell him that he's a superstar when it goes right. He's also endured playing in the hot seat with his whole team counting on him and his family yelling for him. He's learned under fire and he's certainly earned his goalie jersey!
Signing off,
The always proud Soccer Mom!
P.S. I might just love soccer because I have experienced my most memorable moment in a long time during one of the games. As I mentioned, it was chaotic and there were lots of shots being taken on him, lots of yelling going on, and lots of pressure. At one point during the season, we switched sides at halftime and he asked me to walk down to the other end of the field with him. (I had done that the week before because it's a little lonely in enemy territory with all of the heckling that goes on). I asked if he was sure he didn't want Dad/Grandad to go down with him because they know how to coach and he said, "Nope. Just you please." I know that's not going to be their favorite story...but it's mine...and it will be for a long time.
