It is that season again at LCM High School. All the soccer boys are at it once more as they are kicking their way through pre-season throughout the month of January.

The varsity boys soccer team, led by head coach Jeremy Watzlavik, has played in two tournaments in the month of January at Port Neches-Groves (PN-G) and Hampshire-Fannett. They faced Ozen, PN-G, Brenham, and Jasper at PN-G and faced Crosby, Hudson, and Caney Creek at Hampshire-Fannett. These multiple games are helping the guys prepare for the games ahead at the end of January and February.

“I expect the team to progress each week,” Watzlavik said. “We should be better after a game than we were before it. That goes for every game we play.”

The varsity team has three captains including seniors, Luis Sanchez, Conner Maglothan, and Hunter Chaviers. Watzlavik said the team’s biggest competition includes Splendora, Hardin-Jefferson, Liberty, and Hampshire-Fannett.

“It’s a lot of responsibility,” Chaviers said. “Playing in a new district and not knowing what to expect.”

Practices are held every day during the school weeks that are not taken up by a soccer game. Varsity games are generally held on Tuesdays and Fridays at seven in the evening. According to Watzlavik, the team is progressing as expected.

“All the players are adapting to the pace of varsity play and are getting along well,” junior Tyler Brown said. “They are all great players and show a lot of potential for the years to come.”

The primary focus of Watzlavik’s coaching style and philosophy is to play good soccer. According to the head coach, he may not have the best athletes on the field, as that is something you are born with or without. However, Watzlavik said he knows that this is not something to worry over.

“That is a God given ‘skill-set’ that a person either has or does not have,” Watzlavik said. “We can control very little about a person’s physical make-up. What we can control is our soccer skill and our soccer IQ as to how we use it.”

Something unique about the boy’s varsity soccer team is having a German foreign exchange student, Jonas Stichling, play on the varsity team. The team’s goal this year is to make playoffs and hopefully move a little further. The first district game is Tuesday, Jan. 27 at Hardin-Jefferson.

“Being the head soccer coach is a great joy,” Watzlavik said. “I get to be around the game I love and I get to introduce and progress player’s skills in that sport. I also get to know the boys outside of the classroom and that is always a bonus.”