The dilemma was clear to Kentridge High boys soccer coach Glenn Walrond entering the spring season.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Play for the present or build for the future?<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
After a 4-8-4 season in South Puget Sound League North Division play last season, the answer appeared simple.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cDo we let (the younger guys) sit around or do we build?\u201d Walrond said. \u201cThe game pace is a lot higher at the varsity level and we need the younger guys to experience that. When we graded guys out (during tryouts), there were a few guys on varsity last year who are on junior varsity (this year) … we just had some younger guys who graded out a little better.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cSo we went young. It was kind of out of necessity.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Indeed.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The Chargers graduated nine seniors from last year\u2019s roster, including top goal scorers Scott Geffre and Anthony Legault. As such, Kentridge will be left to rely on a more evenly spread out group this year, a team that includes four seniors, two juniors, six sophomores and two freshmen.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Aside from being a less-experienced squad, there\u2019s talent to be had here, Walrond said.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cIf we can keep everybody\u2019s heads in it, we\u2019ll be OK,\u201d the coach noted. \u201cThe hard thing is, with a young team, you have to really coach the psyche of the players. Talent wise, we will be OK.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The talent begins with standout Sam Piehler (midfield), Wes Concepcion (defense) and Estebon Tobon (midfield), all three of whom earned second-team All-League status last spring.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Piehler, who has been on varsity since his freshman year, tallied Kentridge\u2019s first goal of the season in a 1-1 tie against Tahoma. He and Tobon will be relied heavily upon this season to carry the Kentridge offense. It\u2019s a role Piehler has no problem assuming.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve been doing this for a while and I am really enjoying it,\u201d he said. \u201cIf there\u2019s pressure, it\u2019s only when I am not feeling good or don\u2019t feel I have good touch.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Tobon has just recently returned from an ankle injury, which he suffered while playing for his club team in December.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cI was just going up for a header and came down wrong on my ankle,\u201d Estebon explained. \u201cI\u2019ve got a pin and five screws in my ankle now. It\u2019s sore, but I\u2019ve still been training every day.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Concepcion, one of the top field-goal kickers in the fall on the football field, will anchor the defense.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cWes is the best defender on our team. Piehler is the most creative scorer,\u201d Walrond said. \u201cEstebon is just a very well-rounded player. He makes the guys around him better.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
But Walrond also has brought on a strong group of underclassmen, including freshman defender\/midfielder Kyle Bratton, who could make a strong impact this spring.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s really poised as a freshman,\u201d Walrond said. \u201cEven when he makes mistakes, he doesn\u2019t hang his head. He\u2019s got good size, good foot skills. He\u2019s one of those kids that we can build around for the future.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Of course, there\u2019s still plenty to look forward to this season, Concepcion said.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cI think we\u2019re definitely a contender,\u201d he said. \u201cThere\u2019s a lot of talent on this team. Everybody brings their own (talent) to the table. We can utilize everybody.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u2022 COACH:<\/strong> Glenn Walrond, 14th year.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \u2022 LAST YEAR: <\/strong>4-8-4, 7th place in the SPSL North.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \u2022 TOP RETURNERS:<\/strong> Sam Piehler, sr., midfielder\/forward; Esteban Tobon, jr., midfielder; Wes Concepcion, sr., defender; Shaun Walsh, so., defender; Connor Adams, so, forward; Ryan Walsh, sr., goalkeeper.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \u2022 TOP NEWCOMERS:<\/strong> J.J. Schmeck, so., midfielder; Kyle Bratton, fr., defender.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \u2022 OUTLOOK:<\/strong> The Chargers are going young this spring and it could take this bunch a while to come together as evidenced by the team\u2019s 0-3-2 start. By season\u2019s end, this is going to be a formidable team that should make some waves in the SPSL North. But will it be enough to earn a playoff berth?<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \u2022 LAST STATE APPEARANCE:<\/strong> 2004.<\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The dilemma was clear to Kentridge High boys soccer coach Glenn Walrond entering the spring season.<\/p>\n Play for the present or build for the future?<\/p>\n After a 4-8-4 season in South Puget Sound League North Division play last season, the answer appeared simple.<\/p>\n \u201cDo we let (the younger guys) sit around or do we build?\u201d Walrond said. \u201cThe game pace is a lot higher at the varsity level and we need the younger guys to experience that. When we graded guys out (during tryouts), there were a few guys on varsity last year who are on junior varsity (this year) … we just had some younger guys who graded out a little better.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":106,"featured_media":12526,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"yst_prominent_words":[],"class_list":["post-12525","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12525"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/106"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12525"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12525\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12526"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12525"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12525"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12525"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kentreporter.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=12525"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}