Nithin Satish ('28)
The final push… requires the final soccer ball.
With a 2-1 win against Saint Ignatius High School on January 14, the Saint Francis boys’ varsity soccer team reached an important moment in their season: clinching a spot in the Central Coast Section (CCS) playoffs. An impressive achievement that occurred only halfway through their season, the boys have high hopes for the postseason with a team built for success.
Overall, the boys’ season sits at 9-2-2, consisting of an 11-game undefeated streak and scoring a total of 34 goals while conceding just 13. Their nine wins are already three more than their total season wins last year, indicating a drastic shift. When asked about what has changed from last season, leading goal scorer and team captain Michael Scavotto (’26) explained that he feels the team has “matured and improved” and that the group has “grown not just as a team but as a family.”
The idea of the team being even better because they’re a family is a sentiment shared by all players, especially the seniors. Jaden Peercy (’26) states that all players on the team support each other and “never let [their] teammates drop [their] head and get down on themselves,” improving team chemistry and consistency of play. Just as they support each other, their family mentality is also about how much the boys push each other to be better at every practice. Senior David Lawerence Chang explains that even when things get competitive and intense, at the end of the day they are “all one family [and] all have the same goal” to continue to be better for the teammates around them.
The boys are also finding ways to bond off the field. A favorite memory of this season for both Scavotto and Chang was when the boys went on a team bonding trip to Top Golf before stopping at a wings shop to watch the college football final. Both players highlighted how much fun they had enjoying the game with their teammates and how these moments make the team feel even closer.
Despite being on a minor two game losing streak, Erick Fernandez (’26) explains that the team will continue to “keep momentum going” by acknowledging that they have difficult opponents ahead. They “have to do good” in these upcoming games to repeat their success from two years ago when the Lancers made it to the finals of both CCS and California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) playoffs. He highlights that in their remaining games against difficult teams such as Archbishop Mitty High School and Valley Christian High School, the team will aim to “do even better and beat everybody by a bigger margin” to prove that “their recent loses aren’t defining and discrediting anything that they’ve done up to now.”
As the West Catholic Athletic League (WCAL) enters its second half and CCS approaches, the leadership of the seniors and the team’s commitment to each other becomes increasingly vital. It’s clear that the team has the players, the mindset, and now needs the final push. Make sure to come out for the rest of the season and support our boys as they chart their path toward the CCS playoffs!