LAKEWOOD – After finishing the 2017 season with a 10-9 record, it was a nice improvement for the Lakewood boys soccer team in 2018.
The Piners finished the regular season with a 10-4-1 record and a third-place finish in B South. The team has also outscored its opponents, 44-20. That is, in large part, thanks to a strong senior class.
“When you have four to five seniors on the field plus a goalie, you are expected to win some games,” said Lakewood head coach Gene Drumright.
Drumright has four seniors that start every game: Moises Galvan (goalie), Junior Bravo, Giovanni Hernandez, and Jorge Araiza. All four of them are four-year starters. Galvan has made 38 saves in net. Bravo leads the team with eight goals and eight assists. Hernandez is second on the team with six goals.
Also seeing significant time is senior Agustin Lopez, who has been a varsity player all four years.
“When you have four or five kids that have four years of experience, even a couple of juniors that have three years, that really tests their love for the game of soccer,” Drumright said.
Drumright’s assistant coaches are Steeven Guevara, Edgar Gallegos, Nancy Riodan, and Kevin Van Horn. They are a large part to his team’s success and Drumright mentioned that nobody does anything alone.
Drumright has been coaching for over 30 years, but the one thing that he preaches to his players is character. He knows that is a vital trait that his kids will carry with them in life after high school.
“I’ve had some power-packed teams before. But what makes this team different is character comes first with these kids,” Drumright said. “Some coaches understand that, but sometimes, coaches value talent before character. Character is a trait you will carry with you after sports, and that’s what we preach at Lakewood and want to leave a kid with.
“Our motto is no problems,” Drumright continued. “Respect your opponent, win or lose. They should never know you won, and they should never know you lost. We want our kids to be even keel. Let’s not forget, this is high school soccer.”
With the change in the schedule this year, where each team plays their divisional opponents one time, it has enabled teams to see some different competition. It is a change Drumright likes.
“What I liked this year was playing each team in your division one time,” Drumright said. “It gives you a chance to play other teams so they get to see your kids too. We don’t mind traveling because it’s cool to play teams that have the same kind of team makeup that we have.”
A lifelong soccer fan, Drumright loves to see the parents support the kids and enjoys the atmosphere of a game.
“Soccer is a family thing,” Drumright said. “It’s neat when the parents come and they bring flags and show their support for the kids. We love playing Long Branch because it’s like Mexico against Columbia. We enjoy that part of it and the parents do as well.”
Earning the No. 19 seed in the Shore Conference Tournament, the Piners pulled a first-round upset on the road against No. 14 Neptune in a 1-0 win and played extremely competitive against No. 3-seeded CBA, falling, 2-1.
Going up against CBA, a perennial power in the Shore Conference, was a good experience for his team.
“I told our kids going in that no matter where you come from economically, if you go out and play hard, 99 percent of teams will respect their opponents,” Drumright said. “I think my kids understood that for the first time. They were expecting a magnificent fight, and that’s what we gave them. It was an intense game, and really enjoyable to watch.”
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