After spending the past two years leading the Balers’ J.V. girls soccer team to winning records, 2004 SBHS graduate Becky Bonner will take over as the varsity head coach this winter.
Bonner has big shoes to fill in that role, taking over for departed Ben Alvarez, who led the Balers to winning seasons in each of his four years at helm.
As a former school graduate and soccer player, Bonner wants to make sure the program means as much to today’s players as it did for her eight years ago.
But she never though she would be taking over the program so soon – even after joking with 2004 head coach Michael Schurig that she would take his job.
“I was just excited to be a part of the program,” she said. “I didn’t mind what team it was. When I went to high school here it was such a big part of my life I wanted to make sure I gave back to the community. I’m really excited about the program.”
With such a rich understanding of the area and the program, Bonner expects to see the best out of her team both on and off the field, she said.
“The biggest goal that I have this year is making sure the girls come together as a team and making a statement on and off the field,” she said. “We walk on as a team and we walk off as a team. We are improving every game and whatever the record is at the end will speak for itself. But the way to get a good record and a good program is having them develop a relationship with each other.”
That starts at practice, Bonner said. Everyday she wants the team to “work together as a team,” whiling supporting each other.
“Once you do that everything just falls into place,” she said.
As of now, the team is focused on building its familiarity with each other, Bonner said. Almost daily, the team goes through team bonding drills – sometimes unknowingly.
“During preseason the last part of practice we are trying to do something fun with the girls,” she explained.
After only a few weeks of practice the team has already done a practice-ending scavenger hunt, Bonner said.
“The idea is that they are still working hard and they don’t put into the fact that they area conditioning or bonding as a team,” she said. “I think for high school sports, the biggest thing is not just developing a skill set and records but also personal traits. It’s getting the girls to understand what it means to work hard for someone outside themselves.”
Talent wise, the team should be strong with returnees Victoria Perez, Karli Leon, Berenice Bribiesca and Chace Miguel.
“We are really lucky that we have a strong team this year,” Bonner said. “We have speed and the girls are working together as a team. We have a lot of heart. I’m pretty excited about that when we start.”
She continued: “The biggest thing that is getting us excited are the girls. How the girls are working in practice. Every day they are laughing with each other. It’s great to see them enjoy being out here and working hard. That’s the most you can ask for in a program.”
