Written by: Jalen Thompson – Entertainment editor & Parker Hurst – Staff writer
The New Palestine boy’s soccer team is turning their season around by winning the Community Cup in overtime 4-2 against Mt. Vernon. They secured this victory on Sept. 1 due to the hard work of their starting goalie freshman Camden Brown, and all the other players trained by coach Diaz De Leon, staying true to the values that teamwork and dedication lead to success.
“The biggest challenge I had to overcome during the game would probably have to be the feeling of potentially letting my team down,” Brown said.
As a freshman, Brown is clearly focussed on making a lasting impact and great first impression on his team. An ambition he is greatly succeeding through hard work and dedication to his team.
“As a freshman on varsity, I do feel that I am held to higher standards,” Brown said. “Because I’m new to the team, I am held to show out and make it clear that I have my spot for a reason.”
During the game the team had trouble staying motivated to continue while being behind and losing. “It was a back and forth game and it was challenging to keep the same energy and motivation after losing our lead towards the end of regular time,” junior Will Meek, starting varsity right back, said “We never gave up and continued to fight back.”
It is clear that perseverance and determination are a leading factor in Newpal’s win over Mt. Vernon. Senior Hudson Hughes believes that the real work begins in the offseason.
“I feel like the work I put in during the off season and all the way up to the game helped me during the overtime and last 20 minutes to still have a fight left in me to achieve the win and the cup.”
Pushing through adversity is also a staple of the team’s season.
“The biggest challenge was the pressure of playing our rivals in a game that was for the community cup,” said Hughes, “I stayed focused and communicated with my teammates to help achieve a win.”
Meek also believes that the team had many challenges to push through.
“I feel like my hard work and conditioning showed during this game by being able to keep pushing, and playing to the best of my ability even in extra time.”
