Gavilan men's soccer coach Albert Marques said he's receiving compliments from opposing coaches regarding the noticeable improvement of the Rams from last year, despite being a second-year program and having a roster filled with first-year players.
"It's respectable, but we have higher expectations. I'm not content yet with where we are," Marques said. "I think Gavilan has earned the respect of every team in the league. Now we just need to start winning more."
Aside from their noticeable improvement, the Rams remain searching for that elusive first win in Coast Conference play after they lost 3-1 to Canada College in Redwood City on Tuesday.
The Rams are now 0-5 in the Coast Conference, 4-7 overall.
Gavilan's lone goal was pocketed by Erick Erosa on an assist from Fabian Iglesias 30 minutes into the second half, but by then Canada was already cruising towards victory.
Marques said that at first the Rams struggled a bit while trying to adjust to the artificial turf surface in Redwood City, not to mention a slightly smaller field than what Gavilan is used to playing on.
But in the second half, Marques said, the Rams progressed and took more shots than their Canada counterparts.
"The lesson to be learned is that we need to play with that full intensity of 90 minutes and not pick up the game with 15 minutes left," Marques said. "We're losing but we are improving as a team."
The road won't get any easier today when Gavilan hosts Hartnell College in Gilroy at 4 p.m. Marques said the Salinas college is one of the top teams in the state.
"The mood (on the team) is still really good I think," Marques said. "We have some tough games left, but winnable games as well."
Andrew Matheson Andrew Matheson is a sports writer for South Valley Newspapers. He can be reached at 831-637-5566 ext. 334 or at amatheson@svnewspapers.com.
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