Big cleats to fill: Manteca girls soccer welcomes talented freshman class
By ISABELLA GILLETTE
The Tower
Manteca High varsity girls soccer team has welcomed younger talent to fill in the holes after graduating a talented senior class.
Last season, the Buffaloes enjoyed a winning season. Their record was 18-5-5 overall and 3-3-4 in the Valley Oak League. Losing last year's seniors means the program also welcomes new talent. Luckily for Manteca, the class of 2027 brought in numerous hardworking players to build on their foundation as a team. Optimistically this fierce group of girls will fight to keep the winning tradition alive.
“We have had a handful of freshmen girls that were here all summer long, putting in the time and working hard,” coach Justin Coenenberg said. “We're definitely excited for the possibilities of bringing some of them up to varsity.”
The Manteca High girls soccer program practices in the morning before school, often beating the sunrise and first students to campus. (Makenzie Forsberg)
Incoming freshmen have some big cleats to fill.
Cameron Silva was an offensive asset to last year's team.
Silva led the team in all major offensive statistics with a total of 146 shots and 44 goals. Silva is also a vital team player with a team-high 18 assists.
In addition, Silva was a highly appreciated player. She was awarded Player of the Game seven times in her high school career. Silva's freshmen year she was named All-Area midfielder by the Manteca Bulletin. Silva was also selected as the Valley Oak League MVP freshman year. As a junior, Silva was named All-Area forward by the Manteca Bulletin. Silva earned Elite Club National League (ENCL) Second Team Northwest All-Conference honors for her club performance with the Danville Mustangs.
Silva was a four-year player on varsity and since her freshman year, she has been a key player. Silva is now continuing her soccer career at the University of Alabama as a midfielder.
“Well, you can’t fill in Cami’s shoes,” Coenenberg said with a sigh. “She is a once-in-a-lifetime player, but our mentality is who is going to step up with her gone."
Coenenberg is not dwelling on the past but rather focusing on building players to be the next Cameron Silva.
Finding potential talent is the key to any successful team. It is the essential building block that allows teams to grow, develop, and achieve their goals. Four freshmen made the varsity team this season: Layla Flanagan, Makayla Spencer, Kailee Jackson, and Paisley Coenenberg.
Spencer aims to put in the work and contribute as much as she can to the team. As a first-year varsity player, Spencer said her vision for this season is to: “Win and learn good technical playing style.”
The Manteca High girls soccer program practices in the morning before school, often beating the sunrise and first students to campus. (Makenzie Forsberg)
Spencer has played soccer for 11 years and plans to play all four years of high school. She has played for clubs such as San Juan South, Rangers, and Manteca Futbol Club. These clubs have conditioned her to be the player she is today. She understands that competition is demanding in high school and is willing to work for it.
Soccer has had a big imapct on Spencer’s life.
“Soccer has allowed me to travel places I’d never thought I’d go,” Spencer said, “and has showed me many great values of teamwork.”
Manteca has a history of putting freshmen to the test. Last year coach Coenenberg pulled up three freshmen to play varsity: Makenzie Forsberg, Kamiyah Johnson, and Brooklyn Cornish. Coenenberg is not afraid to pull up freshmen to varsity. He believes they are ambitious and work hard to get what they want.
“They’re usually the hungriest,” Coenenberg said, “and oftentimes work the hardest.”
Manteca High student Makenzie Forsberg contributed to this report.