By ROY HESS, Staff Writer
Coming to Brownsville Veterans Memorial as a freshman, Alex Castro never imagined he would be a member of the varsity boys soccer team, let alone become a starter.
After two games were played in the 2020 season, Castro got his opportunity in the varsity lineup as a defensive midfielder. He did so well that he remained in the starting lineup the rest of the season and wound up being one of the players logging the most minutes on the field.
Castro surprised even himself with his contribution to the team on the varsity level as the Chargers won District 32-5A with a 12-1 record and 36 points. They went 19-2-2 overall.
The standout freshman is The Brownsville Herald’s 2020 All-Metro Boys Soccer Newcomer of the Year.
“My first two games I wasn’t a starter because I was still new to the team,” Castro said. “After those first two games I started playing as a starter. When the (district) season started, I was injured against (Brownsville) Pace (and had to sit out). After that I got back to work (and became healthy), and I was a starter again.
“Honestly, I never really thought I would do as well as I did,” he added. “When school first started, I was thinking if I could just make it on the JV Dark team I would be happy. I didn’t ask for more, but I pushed myself and I tried to play my best. When they told me I’d be on the varsity, I was impressed. When they told me I’d be a starter, I was extremely happy.”
Brownsville Veterans’ Alberto Vasquez, the All-Metro co-coach of the year with Los Fresnos’ Michael Miller, said Castro quickly became an important contributor on a team that was replacing almost all of its defensive starters from the previous season due to graduation. The Chargers gave up only nine goals in 13 district games this season.
“We had that hole in the middle of the field (defensively), and we needed to find a replacement,” Vasquez said. “We found Alex (to step in and start). It was a little bit of a learning process in the beginning, but he was the one we were looking for. It turned out that we hardly ever took him out of games in his role as the starter at holding midfielder.
“We knew Alex was there to slow down the opponent and make sure our defensive players were in the right position, so he did an amazing job as a freshman,” Vasquez added. “He stepped into the lineup, worked hard and didn’t flinch. All in all, he did very well. He’s a solid player technically. You can’t play in our lineup unless you’re a solid player.
“He doesn’t make many mistakes, and he reads the game very well. He’s able to get himself into position properly, and he doesn’t try to do too much. He’s very effective. We don’t like to play by holding on to the ball too much. He’s able to move the ball around, and he’s great in that supportive role as we try to get our offense going. (Also, as our defensive midfielder) he was the first guy there to try to slow down the opponents (when on they were on the attack).”
Castro is grateful for being recognized for his efforts on the field as a freshman for the Chargers. He said it motivates him to play even better during the coming seasons.
“I just want to keep working hard and achieve more things in the future,” he said. “It means a lot (to be recognized), and I was extremely happy when I found out about this award. I didn’t ever really expect it, but it’s brought my family and I lots of happiness. My family has been with me and helped me get better since I started playing soccer. I thank Coach Vasquez and the other coaches for giving me the opportunity to see what I could do (in the lineup).
“To me, it was a great achievement (to fit into the lineup and contribute) on our defense,” he added. “The first few games were a little bit of a struggle (since most of the players on our defense were new), but we came together and started working more as a team. The season went pretty well for us on defense. We didn’t allow that many goals. It was honestly a really good achievement.
“First of all, we communicated very well inside and outside of the field. We’re good friends also inside and outside of the field. We all got along, and it was a very good result. I feel like they accepted me quickly and included me a lot, even though I was a freshman and new to the team. I feel this is just the beginning for me and what we can do as a team in the future.”