By CLAIRE CRUZ, Staff Writer
Jarvis Christian College coach Demetrio Hernandez has had a busy week in the Rio Grande Valley.
On Thursday morning in the Brownsville Pace auditorium, he was on hand to help make more dreams come true as Jose Capistran signed a full-ride academic scholarship to play soccer for the Bulldogs.
“Jarvis College and myself are very proud to get Jose to come to our school and be a part of our men’s soccer program,” Hernandez said. In Spanish, he added: “It’s a marvelous thing that not only are the athletics getting better, but the academics are getting better as well with Jose … who is receiving a presidential scholarship with a GPA of 3.9.”
Several people spoke highly of Capistran throughout the ceremony, including Pace boys soccer coach Mario A. Zamora. He called the senior an example for current and future Vikings of what they can achieve when they work hard on and off the field. In his speech, which he delivered in Spanish for Capistran’s mother and sister, Zamora recalled Capistran beginning his career at Pace on the JV squad and working tirelessly to make his way onto the varsity, and said his ambition will take him far.
“I feel very proud. One of the main objectives of the program at Pace is to get the kids to go to college,” Zamora said. “I always tell my student-athletes academics come first. It doesn’t matter if you’re Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo, if you don’t have the grades you won’t get a scholarship. With Jose, it’s all about attitude and wanting to be one of the top players, working hard and being a coachable student-athlete.”
Speaking in Spanish, Capistran’s mother, Marisela Ochoa, said she couldn’t find the words to describe the emotions she was feeling as her son signed to play at the next level. She said she was proud of his accomplishments and the beautiful things said about him, and asked God to continue helping him in the next phase of his life.
Capistran was brief as he addressed the crowd, thanking God and his family, coaches and friends for supporting him and helping him achieve this goal. He began playing team soccer when he was 7 years old and realized he could reach this milestone because of the example set by his older brother, Fernando Capistran, who played one season with Texas College. After signing his scholarship, Capistran, or “Capi” as he was affectionately called by his supporters, donned a blue Bulldogs T-shirt and embraced his future coach Hernandez.
“I’m very happy, I have no words to describe this moment,” Capistran said in Spanish. “It’s been a dream of mine since I was little to play soccer in college, and now that it’s happening it’s incredible.”