Freshman Soccer Season

Tristan had what shaped up to be an incredible freshman soccer season. Pre-season workouts started as early as January and the play-offs were in mid-May. We spent a lot of time at soccer games, and we were never disappointed. 

At the beginning of the season we weren't sure how much Varsity Tristan would play. Then he came home before the first game with only a varsity uniform.... I figured, ok, he's a freshman...he'll dress out varsity, but may not play a whole lot. So we go to the first game...and there's Tristan...starting. And so he started every game...and played most of every game. I was impressed. He played well all season. Daniel and I often talked about how he has amazing decision making at the goal. Often times he'd be at the goal with a good opportunity to score, but he'd see a teammate with a better opportunity, so he'd give up his shot and pass it to his teammate. This didn't always result in a goal...mainly because the teammate wouldn't be quite ready for the pass...most people would assume Tristan would just take the shot....and he would...if he had the best opportunity....but if someone else was in better position, he never hesitated to pass it. He was always one of the last ones off the field after practice and games. He always made sure everything was cleaned up and put away before he left the field. I think he earned himself some good respect from his fellow teammates. 

Being that Tristan was playing Varsity, that meant his games were later. As a result, making it tricky for us since we have little girls that needed to go to bed. During home games, Daniel and I would sometimes split the game. He'd go for the first half, race home during halftime, take over where ever I was in getting the girls to bed so that I could race up to the school to catch the 2nd half. Sometimes we would just get a babysitter, and other times we would just all go...no matter what the time.

The school had an excellent team...the boys went undefeated in district play during the season. We are a smaller school, so sometimes the teams we played in our district weren't much of a challenge. Their coach is great about making sure to schedule games against some of the bigger, tougher schools that are in our county, but not in our district.  They played Brentwood High and Ravenwood High (who are in the "bigger and tougher school" category) only allowing 3 goals between the 2 games....pretty impressive considering those two schools are considered of the best. I was also always impressed with the sportsmanship our boys showed. Although there was one game that got a bit out of control...I think our team ended up with a total of 13 yellow cards and 1 or 2 red cards...yes, in one game. The rest of the season I think our yellow cards only totaled to 5. So clearly there was some interesting things going on that game. Tristan even ended up with one of those yellow cards. Which is very surprising for Tristan. Tristan is a very interesting player to watch. He is competitive, but not overly aggressive...he never gets his feathers ruffled...no matter what kind of banter he hears or other chaos is going on around him. His yellow card was completely unearned. He and a kid from the other team ran into each other and the other kid got hurt...so therefore the ref thought he needed to give Tristan a yellow card. I found it to be almost amusing...Tristan with a yellow card...those 2 things don't really go together.

Tristan was 2nd on the team for goals. He had 8 for the season. Unfortunately their season ended earlier than anticipated in the district semi-finals. I think the team went into it a bit over confident and it ended up biting them in the butts. I know it was disappointing...especially for the upperclassmen, but it leaves Tristan with a lot of room to grow over the next 3 seasons.

Some of the starting line-up. Tristan was one of 3 freshman that started Varsity for the season.

The powerhouse freshman. Mason (#18), Tristan (#11), and Jacob (#7).

Jacob 7 + Tristan 11 = Mason 18

Mason 18 - Tristan 11 = Jacob 7

Mason 18 - Jacob 7 = Tristan 11

You get the idea.... I don't think they did that on purpose, but that's how it ended up.

 They played middle school soccer together as well. During one game, all three of these boys scored a goal. They are all excellent players and I can't wait to see how they grow over the next few years.

Tristan is a very quick and agile player. I'm often impressed at some of the angles and positions the camera would catch him in. I'm not sure how he stays on his feet!!

Tristan wanted some sweet Nike cleats for his birthday...so I splurged and got them for him. They are "mango" colored, which to me, falls into the orange category. The shoes practically glow, making them particularly fun to watch during a game. 

We sent Tristan out to BYU soccer camp again this summer (his 3rd time going). My sister (who lives in Provo) always goes to watch him play...she mentioned he had pink shoes...I said "no, they're orange." She wasn't convinced...then I saw a photo she took and realized Tristan was wearing a different pair of cleats...they were, in fact, his pink ones. He had bought them for himself at the end of the season...the boy has so many pairs of cleats, I can't keep up!!!

So the long and the short of it is: I'm a proud mama. Tristan is an amazing person. I become more and more impressed with him as time goes on. I often mourn the 9 years I missed out on, but am so grateful for the time that I've been blessed to have him. He is hardworking and determined and much of his success is simply due to these two attributes. And now I've got to stop because I'm making myself cry...I'm 9 months pregnant...give me a break. We love you Tristan and are so proud of who you are!!!