By ROY HESS | The Brownsville Herald
Guiding his Brownsville Veterans Memorial soccer team to the Region IV-5A final in back-to-back years was quite an accomplishment for coach Alberto Vasquez, particularly since he did it with a number of new players in the lineup in 2018.
For his efforts in taking the Chargers farther than any other area team in this season’s playoffs, Vasquez is The Brownsville Herald’s All-Metro Boys Soccer Coach of the Year.
After graduating 15 seniors from the 2017 team, the Chargers again advanced five rounds in the Class 5A playoffs and reached the Region IV-5A final on April 14 in Corpus Christi only to come up short 3-1 against a strong Valley View squad.
It was disappointing for the District 32-5A runner-up Chargers (27-3-3) to not win just one more game and go to state, especially after losing to Lopez 1-0 at the same level of the playoffs the year before.
Yet, few teams ever make it that far in the postseason, let alone in back-to-back years.
Vasquez is aware of that fact and said his team will be just as motivated to do well and go even farther in 2019. He expects approximately eight starters back, so the future for the Chargers is looking bright.
“ You go from one year to the next and many times after having a good season, you take a step back,” said Vasquez, who just completed his eighth year coaching the Chargers and is assisted by Dante Ayala. “We graduated so many players (15) from the year before that it was impressive for our guys to step in there and play as well as they played and accomplish as much as we were able to accomplish. It was great to see.
“ Our guys knew exactly what they wanted this year and they went for it,” he added. “A lot of people were under the impression that we had the same group as the previous year and we didn’t.”
Along with the number of his players (seven) receiving All-Metro recognition, Vasquez said he is grateful to be part of it, too.
“ It’s just an honor,” said Vasquez, who played for the Lopez Lobos before graduating in 1996 and went on to play his sport for two years at the University of Texas-Pan American before the Broncs’ soccer program was shelved about 1999. “We have so many great coaches in this area and to be recognized like this is something great.
“ When you start a new program in Brownsville (like we did almost a decade ago), you have to prove yourself,” Vasquez added. “Every year it’s always been our goal to establish our reputation and gain respect. I think over the last eight years we’ve managed to do that.
“ I thank my players and coaching staff for the hard work they put in. Getting an honor is something we all share in.”
Roy Hess covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @HessRgehess