Thursday, March 26, 2020
VALLEY PROFILES
PAGE 3
Dream comes true for TCU soccer players By PAT BECK pbeck@stpeterherald.com After nearly a lifetime of playing pick-up games in their neighborhood with family and friends or playing alone, the dream of playing on a high school team finally came true last fall for Kris Ruiz and Chloe Triden. The 2019-20 Minnesota State High School League fall season marked the first that Tri-City United offered boys and girls soccer programs. Ruiz and Triden, with the help of other TCU students, staff members and families, did a lot of work to make their vision come true.
Soccer experience Ruiz, a 16-year-old sophomore and son of Ramona and Raul, started kicking the ball around at about 8 years old. He grew up playing soccer with his family and friends at Centennial Park in Le Center. Mainly his brothers got him started, but all of his family liked soccer. Then a group of friends, most of whom composed the varsity team, started playing pick-up games about seven years ago. “It was nothing official,” Ruiz said. “We just played for fun. No league or nothing.” When there were enough people, they had two teams of 11, only boys and sometimes adults, mostly uncles. Then, for two years, he joined the Tri-City United Soccer Club, which had teams with summer games against other towns. “It was low level friend leagues of 13- and 14-year-olds,” Ruiz said. “It started with the soccer club, and as time progressed we finally got the school to give us an actual school team. Four years ago we were really trying to get a team.” Triden, a 17-year-old junior and daughter of Tim Triden and Lori
Triden, started playing soccer at age 5 or 6. Unlike Ruiz, Triden didn’t have a big group of family and friends who played soccer together. Her sister, sophomore Alexa Triden, “played it a little bit, but it wasn’t really her thing. But she started it up this year, and now I think she really likes the sport.” “My parents said you should pick a sport,” Triden added of her own experience. “I said ‘Hey, this is cool sport, and I saw it on TV.’ When I started I had so many different coaches, but my parents would play with me if I didn’t have anyone. I worked on it by myself. I would literally just kick a ball outside and practice skills that I learned when I was little or just run in circles, work on dribbling and tricks. That’s what I did for years. She continued, “I have moved around my whole life, but I played with New Prague leagues at the beginning. I did a couple camps when I moved around and home schooled. Before that I played in a Lakeville league, working on drills and playing in tournaments.” Triden came to TCU three years ago in eighth grade and attended summer camps before this season started. She hadn’t played on a team for three years.
The Tri-City United girls soccer captains, from left: defensive midfielder and sophomore Michelle Ramirez, junior and midfielder Maria Martinez, sophomore and wing midfielder Liz Beth Mendez and junior and wing defender Chloe Triden. These girls not only led the girls soccer team, they helped get the program started by recruiting girls and meeting with school faculty. (County News file photo)
Love for the game Both Ruiz and Triden felt passionately about playing their favorite sport in their high school’s colors. “There’s so many things I like about soccer,” Ruiz said. “I love everything about it. Pele, one of the best footballers who ever lived, said, “It’s a beautiful game. I truly believe that because when you’re playing it, it’s
FIRST SEASON HIGHLIGHTS
like a work of art.” Ruiz also is a sprinter in track (100 and 200 meters) “because that helps with soccer, too.”
Triden said, “I just love soccer, and I just wanted an opportunity to play it. I wanted people from my school that I see every day to play with me. We could work together and win games Ruiz said he always wanted to play or not win games, which is also against other schools because he fun. Just play the sport, spend time thought like football, baseball, hock- together and get to know people ey and other teams, they “could play that I go to school with on a deeper with their friends in actual competi- level. And just have something tion, not just summer leagues that competitive that just wasn’t light like are not really that competitive.” practicing.” Triden doesn’t play any other sports, but she is in theater. “Soccer is the one sport I want to stick with.”
Triden said, “We connect with people at a deeper level, working hard to achieve something. Getting to play something that you like, hanging out with people who have a common interest. To me, it was never about winning or losing, it was just getting out there, giving it your And he plays, “For the love of the all and trying to have a good time game. I’ve always wanted a team.” doing it.”
Aug. 27
SOCCER
Continued on page 4
The Tri-City United girls team played the school’s first soccer game against Cannon Falls on TCU football field in Montgomery.
Sept. 5
The first TCU boys game happened at Triton High School.
Sept. 17
The first away game for TCU girls soccer team against Great River Tigers at Twin Cities Academy
Sept. 19
The first home game of TCU boys soccer team versus Triton
to the end of the day
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