Under the bright, mid-May sun, students from Chaparral and Shoemaker hustled back and forth on the turf inside Joseph L. Searles III Stadium on Thursday during the first Life Skills soccer match that showcased a month’s worth of practice and overwhelming school pride.
Organized by Skills teachers Sylvia Luna from Shoemaker and Darky Marin Viera from Chaparral, the match –– which was broken up into three 12-minute periods –– was a huge hit for players, coaches, volunteers, parents and fans alike and ended, 2-0, in favor of the Grey Wolves.
“I saw the desire of the kids to want to participate in events and represent their school. So, I was like, ‘Why don’t we do something where we can play against other KISD schools, just like the general education students?” Luna said. “So, this is great, and as you can tell, we are very excited. It’s just all about being inclusive.”
In fact, it was the coaching from each schools’ varsity soccer players that got the Skills students ready for the anticipated matchup.
“We’ve been visiting with these players a couple times a week over the last few weeks, and just to see the bond between our players and our Life Skills students is really cool,” said CHS boys soccer head coach Tyler Frank, who helped officiate.
Shoemaker senior Felix Cuadrado, who earlier this week signed a letter of intent to play for FC Odisea International Academy in Spain, said he enjoyed the chance to coach and prepare his classmates, and to get to know them in the process.
“I like how their faces light up. Making their day makes my day,” he said. “I’m really proud right now. It’s unbelievable for me to watch.”
Chaparral team captain Jason Wingham and Shoemaker captain Thomas McGinnis met at midfield for the coin toss and shook hands as the teams took the field. Once the whistle blew, the action –– and the cheering –– didn’t stop.
The teams traded momentum throughout, connected crisp passes and shook off the increasing heat as the game wore on. Taeshaun Green and Seth Norbert scored the goals that put the Grey Wolves ahead to stay and they celebrated their victory accordingly.
Frank presented each team with a trophy and the players were given medals postgame as chants of “Shoemaka, maka, maka, what” and “Bobcats” echoed from the groups of students who were more than satisfied about their performances, high-fiving anyone within arms’ reach.
“This gave the kids an opportunity to be on a team, inclusion with their general education peers and represent their schools,” Viera said. “Some of them, at the beginning, didn’t want to do it, but I told them that it was going to be fun. As you saw, they were ready and super excited.”
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