By ROY HESS, Staff Writer
LOS FRESNOS — It would seem to be a natural fit for Clarissa “Claire” Castaneda to play soccer for the University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley in nearby Edinburg.
Castaneda has played the game since her youth and is currently a strong force at center midfielder for the Los Fresnos Lady Falcons as they pursue yet another district championship and trip to the regional tournament.
Castaneda still has plenty of high school soccer left during the coming month or so as she completes her senior season.
And thanks to Wednesday’s college athletic scholarship signing with UTRGV, the four-year starter can now rest assured knowing her future in the sport beyond graduation is determined.
She’s getting a chance to play close to home at the NCAA Division I level while on scholarship.
That’s a pretty good deal by any measure.
“Yes, it does seem like a perfect fit because I’m going into college knowing at least one other player (fellow signee Anna Hover of McAllen High) who I’ve played (club soccer) with already, and I’ve always watched the UTRGV girls’ games, so it is a very good fit,” said Castaneda, who put her name on the dotted line as family, friends, school personnel, teammates and coaches looked on at Wednesday’s on-campus signing ceremony.
There were some tears, but they were mostly tears of joy.
“I’ve known since I was a little girl that I didn’t want to play soccer just for fun,” Castaneda said. “I wanted to make something out of it and become a college soccer player.”
Castaneda has received recognition for her standout play since she was a freshman for the Lady Falcons. Those awards include all-district and All-Metro honors. After her junior season last year, she was named as one of three candidates for the All-Valley female player of the year award.
Patricia K. Hernandez has been there each step of the way with Castaneda. She was an assistant coach two years at Los Fresnos before serving as the Lady Falcons’ head coach this season and the last.
“I’m filled with pride,” Hernandez said. “I’ve known ‘Claire’ in the classroom and on the field for four years. I’ve seen her walk this journey and there’s nothing more exciting than to sit beside her as she signs her name on that paper. I wish her nothing but the best as she continues her athletic career.
“We look forward to watching her play as a Vaquero,” Hernandez added. “I’m happy for her because she’s one of the lucky ones who gets to play at that level, and more so knowing that her family is going to be close by and able to enjoy going to watch her games.
“‘Claire’ has God-given talent and she has used that talent well. Her level of play is like no other — (and perhaps like only) just a few here in the Valley that I’ve seen. Her scholarship is for UTRGV, but I feel she could have gone anywhere at the Division I level.”
Castaneda said she’s not quite finished adding memories to her stellar Los Fresnos soccer career before turning her full attention to college.
“It is amazing to play for the Lady Falcons,” said Castaneda, who plans to pursue a major in kinesiology or criminal justice at UTRGV. “Everyone knows Los Fresnos has such a good soccer program and that we have such a good group of hard-working girls. We all love the sport and that’s what makes it so amazing to be a part of it with our awesome coaches.”
Roy Hess covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @HessRgehess