Quest鈥檚 men鈥檚 soccer team is hoping to change bronze into gold this year.
鈥淭here is a lot of excitement,鈥� Kermodes鈥檚 head coach Alexander Elliott said as the new season began.
It鈥檚 Elliott鈥檚 second year with the team; last season marked a big turnaround for the players, he noted. When Elliott first entered the coaching position the team had been beaten down in a 33-game losing streak.聽
While the players in the jerseys didn鈥檛 change, the mentality and the way the team wanted to represent itself did, Elliott said.聽
鈥淭here is some big leadership in the team and it held the same talent,鈥� he noted. 鈥淭he mental attitude just changed.鈥�
The Kermodes swept through to the Pacwest provincials semi-finals to be squeezed out of a berth in the nationals in a tight shoot out against season champions Vancouver Island University鈥檚 (VIU) Mariners. The Kermodes won their next game against the Douglas College Royals to take third spot in the provincials.聽
Last week, the team鈥檚 season kicked off with a game against the team that stole the spot in the nationals, VIU. The match came to a draw at 0-0. It was a good way to start off the new season, Elliott said.聽
This year鈥檚 team captains are midfielder JB McEown and defence player Taylor Cooper. The roster has 21 names, nine of which are freshmen, Elliott noted. The team consists of members with a wide variety of backgrounds, he said, adding the Kermodes boast players from Germany, Egypt and 小蓝视频
鈥淓very mix of players is different,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut the mentality and what we want to represent doesn鈥檛 change.鈥�
The men鈥檚 team鈥檚 next game is at Quest this Saturday, Sept. 19, against Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU). Kick-off is at 3:30 p.m. Elliott encourages Squamish residents to come cheer on the home team.
In Quest women鈥檚 soccer, Craig Smith moved after the four years as assistant coach to head coach this year. Smith has a wealth of coaching experience, including working with the USL W-League鈥檚 Ottawa Fury from 2008 to 2010 and with the New Zealand women鈥檚 soccer team at its World Cup appearance in Germany in 2011.聽
In 2012, the Kermodes women鈥檚 soccer team was the first Quest athletic team to win a provincial medal, taking home bronze in the semi-finals. The team鈥檚 next home game is also scheduled for this Saturday, Sept. 19.聽
