Bird boys soccer continues to improve

Once not considered a competitive program, L.C. Bird High School’s boys soccer program developed and grew into one under Juan Chavez.

The development and growth have continued under second-year head coach Bobby Clarke.

This season, the Skyhawks will contend with the loss of eight starting seniors, highlighted by All-Conference and All-Region performer Kevin Medina.

L.C. Bird will be very young in the net and on defense with a more experienced midfield and forward unit.

Alejandro Compos is just a freshman, but is an experienced goalie with plenty of club soccer experience. Clarke called him a “very solid player” who “leads from the back.”

Senior defender Rodrigo Perez will lead a defensive unit with juniors Jamera Jones and Elliott Grawe and sophomore Joel Gallegos.

The midfield will be manned primarily by two seniors, Patrick Bishop and Diego Sanchez, along with juniors Kevin Ruiz and Daniel Kim. 

“Our center midfield is very experienced and tactically strong,” Clarke said.

The Skyhawks will be challenged with a typically tough schedule that has come with playing in Class 5.

Upfront, the Skyhawks have already seen early successes on the attack. Forwards Ervin Zunega and David Sanabria have already caused problems for opponents, and Zunega’s three goals have been instrumental in getting L.C. Bird off to a 2-1 start.

Despite the youth movement, Clarke is confident that his team is taking steps to improve on last year’s mark of 6-8-1.