Almond, the River Valley Democrat-Gazette Boys Soccer Coach of the Year, guided his team again for a sixth consecutive time to the final four of the playoffs. He did so this time around with plenty of uncertainty early in the year with a lot of youth starting on the team.
"It's been a special run and it continued this year with so many new faces," Almond said. "We got these young guys in with some seniors who had been there before, so we didn't know what to expect. Early on we lost a few games. We were trying to figure out putting the right people in the right spots. They just came together and really, really started to play well about midway through the season."
It wasn't an easy road for Van Buren (14-9, 9-5) this season. The Pointers found themselves with an overall record of 4-5 and a 1-2 record in 5A-West play early before putting it together late. Van Buren had a season-long win streak of six games late, winning the final four games of conference play and two games in the playoffs. The season only ended for the Pointers in the state tournament semifinals in a 0-0 contest that went to penalty kicks, which Searcy won.
"It was tough for this team not having many returners," Almond said. "Continuity is really big for our sport, and we really didn't have it. We had to learn on the fly. It was a unique situation. We were able to get it done, but it was different. The past couple of years have been very young but very talented. Talent is big. If I can do half a good job as a coach with talented players that work hard then you can piece it together."
Van Buren this season only had three seniors in Eli Davis, Jahaziel Banda and Trevis Bushnaq, but Almond said they leaned on them heavily to help guide a team around them that were very young. That senior class made at least the semifinals every season and helped finish as 5A runner-ups last year.
"We just had three seniors, but they have been with me since the ninth grade," Almond said. "They showed a lot of leadership and really held things together. They were all defenders and just so unselfish. They were in there doing the work and played for a championship last year. They knew what it took to get there and pushed the younger guys to work hard. That's the biggest deal. There's an adjustment for those new guys, so those seniors were big guiding them through it. They know what it takes to be successful."
Almond--true to his unselfish nature--was quick to point to those around him when discussing winning the River Valley Democrat-Gazette Boys Soccer Coach of the Year for a second consecutive season.
"This is a reflection on the team," Almond said. "It's all about those kids. They were the ones doing it and doing the work. They show up and do what I ask them to do. Without that success, you don't get a coach of the year award. I'm not the one on the field out there. They are doing it and getting success. I always... Click here to read full article
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