2010-02-04

BHS varsity soccer preview

By Laura Hernandez

“My goal for the team is to get a step farther in the playoffs than last year,” said second year Bandera High School Boys’ Soccer Coach Clifton Tierney said. The Bulldogs, currently at 2-3 after two tournaments and some “friendlies,” are preparing to start district play on Tuesday, Feb. 9, in Uvalde.

Since there are few 3A schools in the area with soccer teams, the Bulldogs compete in District 55 4-A, which includes Uvalde, San Antonio’s Memorial, Medina Valley and San Antonio’s Kennedy and Edison high schools.

The Dogs anticipate their strongest competition to come in the season opener with Uvalde. “I think they will be the most challenging game,” said leading scorer sophomore Mervyn Silva.

Noting the team’s ability to pass the ball, Silva continued, “I think our strength is mostly sending the ball to our forwards.”

Another strength is the team’s commitment to improvement. “They are committed; they want to improve practice by practice,” Tierney said. However, noting “occasionally failing to work together” as a team weakness, he said, “We still play in ‘bits and pieces’.”

Senior team leader Alberto Silva, Mervyn Silva’s older brother, noted that he has seen improvement in the team’s working together. “We practice harder and we take what we are doing more seriously this year,” Alberto Silva said.

The Dogs echo their coach’s desire to do better than last year. “I hope to get farther than we did last year in the playoffs,” said Alberto Silva.