Special Edition - May 2016

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COPPELL COWBOYS SOCCER SPECIAL EDITION

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THE SIDEKICK

#0 JOSE HARO

#1 JEROD LONGORIA

#2 MANUEL MARTINEZ

#3 RODRIGO ~ ZUNIGA

"My favorite thing about being on the team was going to the state tournament."

"My favorite thing about being on the team was being able to come out and spend every day with some of my best friends."

“My favorite thing about being on the team was being able to play side by side with my brothers and at the end winning the state championship.”

"My favorite thing about being on the team was knowing that no matter what, I always had a group of guys to make me laugh and enjoy myself with."

POSITION: Keeper GRADE: Senior District 7-6A GK of the Year

POSITION: Defender GRADE: Senior All-District 7-6A Second Team

POSITION: Forward, M All-District 7-6A Hono

POSITION: Keeper

GRADE: Sophomore

#7 STJEPAN KILIC

#8 SCOTT SIMIGIAN

#9 ALEX HAAS

“My favorite thing about being on the team was is the close friendships I have with my brothers. We’ve known each other for so long, it’s great chemistry.”

“My favorite thing about being on the team is being able to play with guys that want the same things as me and will play hard as well.”

"My favorite thing about being on the team was winning state."

POSITION: Midfielder GRADE: Senior All-District 7-6A First Team

POSITION: Midfielder

GRADE: Senior

Team Captian, All-District 7-6A First Team, State All-Tournament Team,, All-State Honorable Mention

POSITION: Midfielder

#14 ANDREW GRIMMER

#15 WALEED CHERIF

#16 FRANCISCO REDONDO

“My favorite part about being on the team was playing my favorite sport with my best friends.”

“We’re a family, we always have fun. It’s just with your friends, you get to hang out with them, do whatever you want, we just have fun.”

"My favorite was lunches with the team and winning state."

POSITION: Defender

GRADE: Senior

POSITION: Midfielder

GRADE: Senior

Team Captian, District 7-6A Defensive MVP, First Team All-State

GRADE: Junior

All-District 7-6A First Team, State All-Tournament Team

TH UNDEF TEA 2015COACH CHAD RAKESTRAW

POSITION: Forward GRADE: Sophomore All-District 7-6A Honorable Mention

District 7-6A Coach Area Coach of the Y

#20 GEORGE ACKLING

#21 GREG JOHNSTON

#22 JORDAN PEMBERTON

#23 ASA ROBICHEAUX

“My favorite part of being on the team is just being able to hang out with everybody and just practice everyday with the seniors and upper classmen. It’s really fun.”

“Probably my favorite thing was just being able to celebrate with some of my closest friends.”

“My favorite part about being on the team was definitley being with my teammates, they really made it great this year”

“Playing with my brothers each and everyday at practice and at games, and just knowing that we are working for each other.”

POSITION: Defender GRADE: Sophomore

POSITION: Defender

GRADE: Senior

POSITION: Defender

GRADE: Junior

POSITION: Defender All-District 7-6A Hono

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Mid Field GRADE: Senior orable Mention

HE FEATED AM -2016

of the Year, Year

GRADE: Sophomore orable Mention

COPPELL COWBOYS SOCCER SPECIAL EDITION

#4 WYATT PRIEST

#5 TANNER TRAW

#6 TYLER WHITING

“My favorite part thing being on the team was after we won state, just celebrating in the locker room and the halls.”

“My favorite part about being on the team was being with the guys the whole time and just having fun.”

"My favorite part about being on the team was just the family atmosphere that there is. Everybody is super supportive of each other."

POSITION: Forward GRADE: Senior All-District 7-6A First Team

POSITION: Defender

#10 MARCELO GAITAN

#11 NICK TAYLOR

#12 BRANDON BOHN

“My favorite thing about being on the team was getting to play with my best friends every day and push each other to work hard.”

“My favorite part about being on the team was developing strong relationships with my teammates, and of course winning state. Also, going to Olive Garden five days out of the week.”

“My favorite part about being on the team was the chemistry we had.

It wasn't individuals, we all played as a team.”

POSITION: Forward GRADE: Junior District 7-6A MVP, First Team All-State

POSITION: Defender

POSITION: Forward

GRADE: Sophomore

District 7-6A Newcomer of the year, First Team All-State

POSITION: Forward

GRADE: Senior

Team Captian, All-District 7-6A Second Team

#18 JACOB MCEWEN

#19 RYAN MACDONALD

"My favorite moment was beating Plano West, they were the hardest team during playoffs. After beating them we knew that we could win state."

"My favorite part about being on the team was the tournaments that we went to, they were a lot of fun and how the team bonded. It's one of the better teams I've been on."

“Going to the tournaments. The bus rides were just a lot of fun, just hanging out with some good friends."

POSITION: Forward GRADE: Junior All-District 7-6A Honorable Mention

POSITION: Defender

#24 PARKER MCCLURE

#25 BISHESH MANANDHAR

#26 LAURENCE FAIRCHILD

“I feel like we all have chemistry on and off the field because we are all close friends. It displays in the game, that we all have chemistry with each other.”

“My favorite part about being on the team was hanging out and practicing with my teammates everyday because I learned so much from them.”

“Making friends, having a group of guys that I know I can talk to.”

POSITION: Midfielder

GRADE: Junior

Team Captian, State All-Tournament Team, All-District 7-6A Second Team

POSITION: Midfielder

GRADE: Junior

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GRADE: Senior

GRADE: Senior

State Tournament MVP, State All-Tournament Team, All-District 7-6A Second Team

#17 BLAKE BOND

GRADE: Junior

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POSITION: Defender Junior

POSITION: Defender

GRADE:

GRADE: Junior

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COPPELL COWBOYS SOCCER SPECIAL EDITION

2013 vs. 2016

ACHIEVING THEIR GOAL

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Marcus Krum, Sports Editor, @marcuskrum

An undefeated season. A magical playoff run. A five-goal championship game victory.

In a season for the history books, the 2016 Cowboys soccer team looked uncomparable. Winning 14 games by three goals or more, they easily outplayed every team in their wake on their way to the state championship.

But what was different about this team? What was the tipping point from good to best? What made them so different, so great, so special?

WORK ETHIC

After the 2013 state championship, the ending to the last two seasons have been difficult to swallow, with a state runner-up finish in 2014 and a crushing loss in the regional quarterfinal in 2015. The Cowboys came back this year with an attitude of avenging those two late-season defeats.

“There were a couple contributing factors that drove the guys,” Coppell coach Chad Rakestraw said. “One was the loss, so early on in the quarterfinals where we felt like we were really disappointed not being able to make a regional tournament and give us a shot at a state tournament.”

After a solid off-season, Coppell began as one of the top ranked teams in the nation with many impact players returning from the 2015 season. However, they did not receive an invitation to the highly regarded Montverde Academy Tournament in which they had played for the last several years.

At the beginning of the season, nobody had their starting spot set in stone. Seniors and sophomores alike were battling for playing time.

“We all pushed each other, we all fought for positions, we all came in at the beginning of the year and no one had a spot set for them,” Grimmer said. “Everyone fought for their spot.”

This competition mentality set the tone for the entire season, creating a sense of urgency from the start.

“What I like to say to the guys is ‘iron sharpens iron’,” Rakestraw said. “One man sharpens another. That competition breeds competitiveness and fight and a desire to earn your spot and earn your time. That’s a huge element for us, to be able to just breed an environment like that.”

TALENT Nothing separates greatness from mediocrity quite like talent. With this team, special ability came in bunches. All across the board at every position, the Cowboys displayed immense talent, giving them the ability to play all-around great soccer.

“We had great depth,” Rakestraw said. “But you’re only as good as your last man. We had 26 guys on our roster, and 26 is a lot, but every single one of those guys deserved to be there.”

In tournament play, playing games on backto-back days is not easy. However, in both the regional and state tournament, the team was able to give guys rest without compromising skill level. In the state championship game, the ability to dominate in all facets of the game was in full display in their crushing 6-1 victory.

“It’s incredible,” Grimmer said. “It was kind of unexpected, but we weren’t going to let up.

Winning 6-1 was just icing on the cake for us.”

At first glance, the team looks much like the 2013 championship team. The leading scorers, both underclassmen, averaged almost one goal per game. Both defenses shutout opposing attacks nearly 15 times. Leading goal scorer junior forward Nick Taylor and sophomore forward Wyatt Priest both outscored Chris Madden, the leading scorer in 2013.

After the season ended, the Coppell team picked up numerous awards, including 15 district award winners. More than their starting lineup took home these accolades.

“It shows a lot about the program,” Longoria says. “It shows a lot about the coaches, and the training and the hard work we put in every day.”

TEAM CHEMISTRY Above all else, this team worked together. As a close-knit group of friends, the group was able to achieve through their bonds with each other.

In the first round of the playoffs came a critical point for the Cowboys. Facing a one goal deficit with under 20 minutes remaining, the team could have gone into panic mode, placing blame on each other. Instead, they rallied around each other and were able to come up with three goals to move on to the second round.

“That was a huge turning point for us," Rakestraw said. When you hit the 18 minute mark down 2-1, there was either doubt, or there was ‘let’s turn this around and get it going in the right direction’. That was the mentality that these guys had. They didn’t give up, the fought on, and to be able to come back in a game like that shows a huge amount of mental toughness and just fortitude.

As senior captains on this championship team, Simigian and Grimmer were major components in the closeness of the group. They were the ones to help propel this team to greatness. They were part of the glue that held this bond of team chemistry together.

“As captains, we all motivated each other to come to this point,” Grimmer said.

“Winning state, there’s nothing better than that.”

In every game they played, the Cowboys proved their worth. They displayed that their no. 1 state rank was no fluke, that the hype is real. Their determination and talent rose above all other teams in their path.

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COPPELL COWBOYS SOCCER SPECIAL EDITION

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Aubrie Sisk and Kelly Monaghan, Staff Writers

On the outside, one can see that the Coppell boys soccer team won the Class 6A State Championship, but there was a lot more to it than just the undefeated season. The brotherhood between 2016 District 7-6A MVP Nick Taylor and 2016 District 7-6A Newcomer of the year Wyatt Priest goes beyond just the field.

1. What was the biggest thing that led to both of your successes in the attack this year?

Nick: I think the biggest thing that led to our success was developing the family-type relationship within the team and the strong chemistry so we were basically all brothers.

Wyatt: We had a brotherhood the whole season. We didn’t play for ourselves, we didn’t play for the amount of goals or assists we had, we played so we could make the team happy. We all knew we wanted to go far and win state this year so we just played for each other.

2. Would you say being close as teammates helped your execution on the field?

Nick: Yeah, of course. Like we said, that brotherhood relationship really helped. We wanted to be around each other all the time, and we enjoyed every single moment.

Wyatt: We also fed off each other’s energy, so if one person started getting hyped it would push everyone to go harder and that really helped us out.

3. How did the game plan with both of you at forward evolve during the season as you both emerged as starters for the team?

Nick: When Wyatt moved into that midfield role, since he’s a very good distributer of the ball, it allowed our play to move more fluently and we also got different ways to attack and that helped the various amounts of goals that we scored.

Wyatt: Well, we started off both playing forward and then I moved more into a center midfielder role and then we also got to bring in Tanner Traw at forward which that helped us with speed.

4. It is a pretty big deal to win state as underclassmen, so what are you looking forward to for the team next year?

Nick: Next year I’m looking forward to another run at state, and I think the upcoming team for next year is also very talented. As long as we keep this establishment of a brotherhood within the whole entire team, I think we have a chance at winning state again next year.

Wyatt: We have a lot of talent coming in and a lot of talent staying as well. I think that we have to stay confident, but not cocky because we won state, and go into each game knowing that any team can win and that we have to play our hardest. If we stay humble and focused then I think we can make a good run next year.

5. How did your team ritual start? You are known to dab, row and have handshakes to celebrate.

Nick: I don’t really remember how it all started. Wyatt and I started dabbing in the beginning of the season when we were just messing around and then we eventually decided that after every goal we were both a part of we would dab.

Wyatt: I think we’ve done it like 20 times this year. In the FIFA video game we see celebrations and so we’ve always just wanted to do our own celebrations, Tanner has his where he kind of flops around and we also all did the rowboat. It’s just a fun thing to do and I’d say it’s kind of an incentive to score because we get to do the fun celebrations.

Nick: It also brings a lot of energy to the game, it gets everyone hyped. Especially the rowboat, that was crazy.

Nick Taylor, Wyatt Priest on their success, rituals

Wyatt: Yeah, especially because that was on senior night too.

Nick: I think that all that energy allows us to play even better.

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Undefeated season, high school career capped with MVP honors TEAMWORK

DEDICATION Coppell High School senior and fullback Brandon Bohn has been playing soccer since he was three. Bohn will continue to play soccer at Trinity University in San Antonio.

Coppell High School seniors Rodrigo Zuniga and Brandon Bohn dribble down the field during the state championship match on April 16 at Birkelbach Field in Georgetown.

MVP

CELEBRATION

Coppell High School senior and fullback Brandon Bohn gets recognized with the Most Valuable Player of the UIL 6A State tournament award on April 16 at Birkelbach Field in Georgetown.

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The Coppell Cowboys soccer team celebrates their defeat over Lake Travis, 6-1, in the state championship match, ending their undefeated season with a record of 24-0-2. photos by

Kathryn Rudd, Staff Writer, @rudd_kathryn

ifteen years after taking the field for the first time, senior defender Brandon Bohn walks off for the last time with the Coppell Cowboys not only a state champion, but named Most Valuable Player for the Class 6A state tournament.

Bohn’s journey with soccer began when he was only 3, and the excellence he continued to show in the sport grew as he saw it as one of the important things in his life.

“Since it’s my last year, I was just trying to play as well as I could, to give my team the chance to win,” Bohn said. “To come out with a win like that, it just feels amazing I could perform well for my team.”

Coppell coach Chad Rakestraw has been apart of his life since he was in the seventh grade.

“He has taught me so much,” Bohn said. “He taught me to be a better person, and [has] shown me what it takes to be a man. The big one is integrity, he really instilled it in me and kept me accountable for what I do.”

The skill and leadership Bohn has presented to the team

has instilled confidence in Rakestraw that moving forward, the team can still reflect the dominance they performed with this year. His mental fortitude throughout the semifinal and the state championship has helped shaped the composure and capability of the team in all aspects of the game.

“He plays so incredibly well. It’s his sole responsibility to be a really good defender and really limited their side to do nothing,” Rakestraw said. “There are younger guys that can look at him and assess his performance and see how determined he was. That’s something that anyone can learn from.”

Senior defender Andrew Grimmer has been able to play by his side and watch him grow as a player these last four years.

“He always comes in and works hard every practice,” Grimmer said. “Over the summer he worked really hard to play a starting spot this year. Winning MVP was really well deserved.”

Moving on from Coppell High School, Bohn will continue to play the sport he loves at Trinity University in San Antonio.

“It’s a really good opportunity,” Bohn said. “I’m looking

A big thank you to: COPPELL COWBOYS SOCCER BOOSTER CLUB

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forward to the next chapter in my life and hopefully winning a national championship. This team has taught me so much.”

The energy and dedication Bohn brought to the playoffs was more than tell-tale sign he was worthy of the award. With two assists in the state final, one to put the Cowboys in the lead and another for an insurance goal, the heart and dedication he played with demonstrates the future not only for him, but the entire team in future seasons.

“It’s good for him because he’s a senior, and he’s one of my best friends and [MVP] was well deserved,” Grimmer said.

“I know I’ll always have him on my side so if one of gets beat we’ll protect each other.”

Along with continuing a legacy of excellence, Bohn has shown the younger players what they can be capable of moving forward. With 12 seniors leaving the team, he has worked to create an environment where the upcoming players can grow the same way he has.

“I feel that there is a lot of young talent on the team that will be able to pick up what the seniors had” Bohn said. “I have learned so much from this team in four years, and I have really good expectations for them.”

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Chase Wofford Rachel Buigas-Lopez Joseph Krum Marcus Krum Meara Isenberg

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COPPELL COWBOYS SOCCER SPECIAL EDITION

COPPELL COWBOYS

STATE CHAMPIONS

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Kathryn Rudd, Staff Writer, @rudd_kathryn

With a state title on the line, rain clouds hovering over the sky and a tie game at the half, a spark within the Coppell Cowboys came with 30 minutes remaining in the Class 6A state final, and the fire did not burn out until the buzzer sounded for the last time this season.

Coppell took an astounding 6-1 victory over Lake Travis (28-1) that earned it the Class 6A state title and an undefeated season, proving the 2016 Cowboys (24-0-2) soccer team is one with unyielding heart and brotherhood.

“We couldn’t lose focus and take our mind off the game, we still had minutes to go, but going into those last few minutes was such a great feeling.”

NICK TAYLOR, junior

above The Coppell Cowboys soccer

team celebrates sophomore Wyatt Priest’s goal during the first half of their Class 6A state championship match on April 16 at Birkelbach Field in Georgetown in the state championship match, to make the score 1-0. left The Coppell Cowboys soccer teams

celebrates senior Brandon Bohn’s Most Valuable Player award. The Cowboys' defeat of Lake Travis gained their third state championship crown.

BEFORE

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Coppell High School head coach Chad Rakestraw gets splashed in celebration of their Class 6A state championship on April 16 at Birkelbach Field in Georgetown. The Cowboys defeated Lake Travis, 6-1, in the state championship match, ending their undefeated season with a record of 24-0-2. above

AFTER