When you think of Sapulpa athletics does soccer come to mind? Well it should. The girls and boys teams have talent and good numbers as they both focus on creating a culture of winning.
Kelsey Gordon
Lady Chieftains
Head coach Lori Arundell and assistant coach Tiffany Admire have worked hard to get their girls on the same page and raise the level of excitement coming into the new season.
“We’re very excited about the season coming off making the state tournament for the first time in several years. We have a lot of new young talent and a new soccer facility. We’re excited to have our own field with soccer lines,” said coach Arundell.
Leading the way is senior midfielder Kelsey Gordon. Last season she scored 13 goals with four assists. Forward and fellow senior Morgan Medina accounted for nine goals and four assists. The pair made All-District last season and expect to have a similar performance this season.
Mackenzie Biggs has the potential to become a real difference maker from her midfielder position. In 2015 she scored three goals and had four assists as a sophomore. Defenders Paige Arundell and Stephanie Prescott have stepped up their play and bring intensity to the pitch. Goalie Cierra Kent played in 12 games and had a 63.5% save rate.
Seniors Izzy Bacon and Whitney Kamies hang up the basketball shoes for cleats as both will start as midfielders for coach Arundell.
Osman Muniz
Chieftains
The bench is deep for head coach Juan de Dios Castillo giving him plenty opportunities to keep players fresh.
“This is my second year as head coach at Sapulpa and this season we are laying the foundation of what the program is going to be about. I am excited about the response of the students. We had 40 players trying out for the team; this is something that hasn’t happened in over a decade,” said coach Castillo.
Goalkeeper Ethan Tanton is one of several seniors on the roster coach Castillo is looking to for leadership on the field. Paige McCracken, Cash Sivadon, Jacob Campbell, Cade Rivera are other seniors on the team with solid experience and an eagerness to get on the field. Add Jose Gallegos to that list of upper classmen and you have a solid core of players ready to take the next step.
Coach Castillo said to look for junior Osman Munoz at forward, freshman midfielders Tanner Johnson and Ethan Castillo, and freshman defender Tyson Scott.
With so many underclassmen pushing for playing time, coach Castillo and assistant coach Cameron Mortizavi are excited to see how the competition helps the squad moving forward.
Also look for Sabastian Venetti, Carson Lamproe, Aiden Haslam, Colton Broughton, Bobby Schmidth, Jaxon Zamudio and Bo Blevins. Maybe this team can get soccer mentioned as a sport played at Sapulpa on their wikipedia page.
Post Season Schedule
May 3rd – 1st round of playoffs
May 6th – Quarterfinals
May 10th – Semifinals
May 13th – 14th – State Finals
